The government last evening said the full force of the law would be applied following Monday night’s incident involving Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed and Special Branch Head, Senior Superintendent Prem Narine, and disclosed that the United States Department of Justice was being kept informed.
In a statement accusing persons of attempting to distort the circumstances, the government linked the incident to Narine’s role as a critical witness in the extradition proceedings involving Mohamed and his father, Nazar Mohamed.
It said multiple serious criminal offences arose for consideration and that law enforcement investigations were continuing.
“The State has a duty to protect its justice system from interference and perversions. Witnesses are key to any justice system. They must always feel safe when they testify. It is the State’s duty to protect them. The State will do so. The full force of the law will be applied,” the statement said.
The government described its account as factually verifiable and said neither obfuscation, fabrication nor “Facebook trolling” would be allowed to contradict it. It maintained that the law must be allowed to take its course.
According to the statement, Mohamed and two other men were, by his own admission, filming Narine’s Barr Street, Kitty home around midnight from a dark-coloured, heavily tinted car.
The government asserted that gunshots came from the vehicle and that spent shells were found on the road near Narine’s residence. It said Narine fired at the car with his service handgun, after which law enforcement officers pursued and intercepted it.
Mohamed was in the back seat and the two other occupants were in the front, the statement said. It added that an unlicensed firearm was found in the vehicle and that all three men were arrested and remained in custody.
The assertion that shots came from the car goes beyond the wording of the police statement issued earlier yesterday. Police said Narine heard what appeared to be a gunshot as the vehicle approached his home for a second time, took cover and fired towards it. That statement did not identify who allegedly fired the initial shot.
Police identified the other occupants as Mario Mohamed and driver Eugene Thorne. The force reported finding a .32 Taurus pistol without a serial number and three live rounds in the car, as well as one .32 spent shell and four 9mm spent shells at Barr Street. Mohamed’s sister, Hana Khamelia, disputed the firearm discovery and alleged that the weapon had been planted.
The Government emphasised that Narine was currently giving evidence in the Mohameds’ extradition case at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court. It also referred to photographs of Narine and his family, including his minor son, with President Irfaan Ali which, it said, had been posted on Mohamed’s Facebook page to insinuate impropriety.
The government said Narine had consequently told the presiding magistrate, under oath, that he feared for his life and his family’s safety.
It further cited his testimony describing Mohamed as a national security threat and alleging that police information implicated him in killings.
Kiskadee Watch previously reported that, under cross-examination, Narine acknowledged that Mohamed had not been charged with the alleged killings and other offences cited in support of that assessment, and that he knew of no court finding of wrongdoing against him in relation to those allegations.
The government additionally alleged that witnesses had died in murder investigations implicating Mohamed. It did not identify those witnesses, the investigations concerned or evidence supporting that assertion.
It argued that the incident had implications not only for the safety of witnesses in the Guyana extradition proceedings but also for the United States’ criminal justice system.
The statement described the local proceedings as preliminary to a criminal trial which could take place in the United States if Mohamed is extradited. It did not announce any new charges arising from Monday night’s incident.
“The Department of Justice of the United States is being kept informed of these startling developments,” the government said.
Discussion