THE trial involving former General Manager (GM) of the New Guyana Marketing Corporation (NGMC), Nizam Hassan and Felecia De Souza-Madramootoo, who are charged with conspiracy to procure money, continued on Tuesday at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.
They are accused of paying themselves under false pretence in relation to the approval of payments for low-graded rehabilitation works done on the NGMC building at Robb Street, Georgetown.

The former Executive Assistant of Hassan, Ananda Persaud, testified before Chief Magistrate, Ann McLennan; while the evidence-in- chief was led by Police Prosecutor Gordon Mansfield.
Persaud, who now works at the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB), appeared in court Tuesday afternoon hours after the chief magistrate had issued a warrant for her arrest.

The witness explained that during her employment at the NGMC, she was responsible for preparing reports, payment requisitions and scheduling meetings.
Persaud explained that on February 8, 2012, she was on duty at NGMC when she was contacted by the then General Manager, Hassan, who asked her to prepare a requisition for payment for Constantine Engineering.

The former assistant noted that she prepared a payment voucher and signed same before taking it to the accountant, after receiving certain documents.
However on June 29, 2016, while at the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) where she was shown the said payment vouchers requisition with request for payments by Constantine Engineering and also the recommendation for payment by Hanniel Madramootoo.

The witness identified the documents which were tended in court. Also testifying was Dave Hicks, an employee of the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority.
A total of 34 witnesses are expected to be called by the prosecutor. In the meantime, Hassan, 50, of Good Hope, East Coast Demerara and De Souza-Madramootoo, 34, of Lusignan, East Coast Demerara, have each been released on $250,000 bail.
The duo has been instructed to report to the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) Headquarters, Camp Road, Georgetown and were instructed to lodge their passports with the court.

It is alleged that between October 28, 2010 and April 25, 2012, they conspired with each other to commit the offence by continuously approving payments, which were made to the contractor of the engineering firm, for works that were incompetently and incorrectly done with inferior materials to rehabilitate the NGMC building at Robb and Alexander Streets, Bourda, Georgetown, knowing that such works should not have been approved.