Four Kitty men charged, remanded for armed robbery

Last Updated on Tuesday, 14 March 2017, 21:05 by Derwayne Wills

Four men were today, March 14, charged jointly with armed robbery by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan for the March 4 robbery of Aaron Akbar, and Esau Akbar at Diamond, East Bank Demerara.

31-year-old Junior Stewart of Thomas Street, Kitty; 24-year-old Kacey Helliger of Shell Road, Kitty; 31-year-old Dellon Morgan of Dowding Street, Kitty; and 29-year-old Richard Sewnarine of Duncan Street, Kitty, were charged and remanded for the robbery which occurred in Diamond on the East Bank of Demerara.

The court heard Aaron Akbar was robbed of $834,000, while Esau Akbar was robbed of $7,000 cash, and a cellular phone valued at $15,000.

Junior Stewart was represented by attorney-at-law Dexter Todd. Todd told the court his client, a graphic artist, made an allegation in open court that a senior police officer had uttered words to his client, to the effect that he would not walk the streets once he is a police officer.

Todd told the court that charges against his client were trumped up. He made mention of the conditions under which his client was kept. According to him, his client was kept in a concrete cell where the floor was believed to be intentionally flooded by ranks. Todd told the court the other cells in the Diamond Police Station were dry.

The lawyer went on to accuse police of having a vendetta against his client, and putting charges against him which could not be proven.

Todd further alleged his client was beaten in Kitty by ranks of the police force, under the guise that he was resisting arrest. No report was made of that incident.

Bail was denied by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan. The four will appear at the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court on March 22.

Kacey Helliger was also charged today in two other armed robberies along with three other persons. The court heard that Helliger, along with Dellon Morgan, Mark Vaughn, and Roberto Sankar, robbed Dexter Lowe on January 30 at Pigeon Island, East Bank Demerara of a pistol and 8 live rounds.

The four were also charged with robbing Julia Cheong of $1.2Million at Pigeon Island on January 30. Vaughn, 46 years, from Dowding Street Kitty is a miner, while Sankar, 26 years of Pigeon Island, is the owner of the place where the robbery was conducted.

Sankar’s lawyer challenged the charge against him, saying he fully cooperated with police, even offering surveillance evidence which resulted in the arrest of the men who are now charged along with him.

Chief Magistrate McLennan denied bail against the four, who will appear at the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court on March 21.