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Businessman loses $7M in failed boat deal
– says police told him: “You won’t get anywhere, the man has connections”
Businessman Basdeo Pooran
(Kaieteur News) – A 64-year-old Georgetown businessman has expressed frustration and disappointment over what he describes as the poor handling of a matter by the Guyana Police Force.
The businessman, Basdeo Pooran, said the matter dates back to 2015 where he paid more than $7 million for a fishing boat that was never delivered. He is urging the authorities to properly investigate the matter which was initially reported to the headquarters of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).
Pooran said he invested over $6 million to have a fishing vessel built since 2015 but is yet to receive the boat or a refund.
In an interview with Kaieteur News, the businessman explained that in December 2014, his brother introduced him to a boat builder from Essequibo.
“My brother, Mark Raghoo, who was a fisherman, told me he wanted to migrate to Guyana and get into the fishing business. So, I decided to help him by building a boat,” Pooran recalled. He said another brother, Vikram, who was a sea captain, recommended an individual from Essequibo who could construct the vessel.
On December 3, 2014, Pooran met the alleged boat builder at his Sheriff Street business, where they discussed building two 55-foot fishing boats—one for Pooran and one for Raghoo. The boat builder quoted a price of $6.3 million per vessel, and they agreed that the construction would take place in Essequibo.
A receipt showing payment of $5.1M to the boat builder
Pooran said that on August 29, 2015, he paid $5.1 million toward the construction and was given a signed receipt. “Upon making the said payment [the boat builder] gave me all assurance that he would have the boat completed and delivered before the end of October,” Pooran said.
However, later that month, the boat builder allegedly called claiming financial difficulties and requested another $100,000 to buy cotton for the vessel. Pooran complied, but the boat was still not delivered.
During the following months, the businessman said he continued receiving requests for money. On March 24, 2016, the boat builder allegedly asked for another $500,000 to purchase more materials, followed by another $200,000 on June 10, 2016, supposedly to complete the project.
“Up to this time (the boat builder) would have never delivered the boat to me. I must mention that I would have paid a total of $5,900,000 Guyana currency to him for my fishing boat and he never delivered it to me. I tried to contact him on several occasions, however my efforts were futile. I must mention that I only paid the money to “the alleged builder” because I felt that he was a genuine person and that he would have the boat delivered to me,” Pooran said.
The police statement made by Basdeo Pooran
After years of waiting and failed attempts to contact the boat builder, Pooran said he filed a complaint at the CID Headquarters in 2019. He was later informed that the suspect had been arrested and placed on $60,000 station bail. However, when he followed up, he was told that the case was sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for advice.
“When I went back, one of the officers told me I won’t get anywhere with this matter because the man has connections,” Pooran alleged.
In December 2024, a frustrated Pooran wrote letters to both the DPP and the Attorney General, but he said he never received a response. “Up to now, I can’t hear back from anybody. I haven’t heard from the man since the day I saw him at the police station,” he said. Pooran further alleged that he later learned the boat was completed and sold to “a Chinese man in Suriname.”
“I would like the police to take up this matter again,” Pooran pleaded.
Efforts by Kaieteur News to obtain a comment from the CID Headquarters or Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum regarding the status of the case proved futile.
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