Four Guyanese men, who were last year charged with possession of equipment to commit burglary, were jailed on Monday for periods ranging from six months to two years, the Searchlight newspaper reported.
Chief Magistrate Sonya Young,sitting at the Serious Offences court,sentenced Rizwan Mohammed Meerza,35 a bodywork man to six months in prison. Kevin Orindi McLennan,29 a computer technician,Aslam Mohammed Kayum 47 a welder fabricator, and Devindra Singh, 33
a technician were each sentenced to two years in prison.
On September 30,2012,the guyanese were arrested at the ET Joshua airport around 11am after they were caught with two red handle pliers,one x-ray papers,data card readers and other equipment for the use in the course of burglary.
Meerza, McLennan, Kayum, and Singh pleaded guilty. The guilty woman is Savitrie Sookraj but she has not been sentenced yet.Two of their compatriots Surenda Sookdeo and Gangadal Budram were acquitted.
The Vincentian newspaper has reported that the touring party arrived on different Liat flights that Sunday and outlined their intention of spending a holiday here. It was not until they raised alarm bells that their operation became of concern to law enforcement officers.
Included in the visitors’ luggage were drills, saws, silicone gel, five bits, one yellow cutting blade, and three screw drivers. Solder machines, cables, a Samsung cell phone and charger, X-ray Paper, extension cord, scissors, magnifying glass, a counterfeit detection pen, 314 data cards, two scanners with cameras, and a Toshiba Laptop were also in their possession.
According to information from the Police, the visitors are of interest to security forces in other jurisdictions. Their apprehension here may have saved the country some money. And their detention served as a deterrent to incidence of fraud which has plagued this country in recent escapades.
Police Prosecutor Inspector Adolphus Delplesche told the court that one of the accused men, Davendra Singh, returned from French Guyana and linked up with his colleagues in Guyana where according to him, they hatched the plot “operation money hunt.â€
Magistrate Young did not accept that term, and Delplesche withdrew that statement. He outlined however, that the mission was to plant the camera and scanning equipment to the roof of ATM machines.
