Miss Universe Guyana 2016, Soyini Fraser, has broken her silence on a recent occurrence in which a website reported that she had been arrested in London for possession of cocaine.
The article, published last Sunday on the website metro-uk.com, bore the headline “Miss Universe Guyana 2016 Arrested in London Heathrow Airport with 2kg of Cocaine” and alleged that she was arrested and would be prosecuted by the London District Attorney.In a statement, Soyini said that the article is one of many articles from that site which attaches the names of various personalities to a similar headline. She condemned the attempt to defame her character by unknown persons. “Not only am I currently in Guyana, having recently returned from the Philippines after participating in the Miss Universe Pageant, but I have also not visited London since 2011,” Soyini said. “Such acts can only stem from persons with malicious intent who seek to soil my reputation which I have worked arduously to upkeep over the years.”
The emergence of the article led to hundreds of persons on Facebook sharing and discussing the possibility of the pageant queen’s guilt. While some offered support, many took the opportunity to make negative comments and expressed disappointment that Guyana’s reputation would be tarnished by the occurrence.
“I wish to call on persons who seek to aid in the spread of these articles on social media to be knowledgeable about the prevalence of fake news and to carefully assess their sources for authenticity before sharing information,” Soyini said.
She added that as she continues to hold the title of Miss Universe Guyana, she is focused on promoting positive aspects of Guyana and to help to curb any stigma that may be attached to the country. “I will also be working on the charitable causes that the Miss Universe Guyana title holds dear, as well as my own,” she said.
In September last year, Soyini was crowned Miss Universe Guyana, beating out tough competition, including former Miss Guyana World, Rafieya Husain. Soyini is no stranger to pageantry, and holds several titles. Soyini represented Guyana at the Miss Universe Pageant in the Phillipines in January this year.