MINUTES into his testimony, 85-year-old Winston Harry broke down in tears as he recalled the last moments spent with his son Bonny, who was not only reportedly shot dead along with seven other miners, but was burnt beyond recognition at a mining camp at Lindo Creek in June, 2008.

For 10 years, the mass murder has remained unsolved with relatives and friends of the deceased alleging that it was the Joint Services which had committed the gruesome act. But the government of the day had said that it was the notorious gang led by Rondell ‘Fineman’ Rawlins that was responsible.

For President David Granger, the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the Lindo Creek massacre will not only unfold the truth about what really transpired at that mining camp, but is also pivotal in unravelling the tapestry of criminality that engulfed the country between 2000 and 2008.

When the commission commenced its first round of public hearings into the Lindo Creek massacre on Thursday, Winston Harry was among four persons who took the stand before the Chair, Justice Retired Donald Trotman in a packed chamber at the Department of Public Service.

He had last seen his son in March, 2008 – approximately three months before receiving the devastating news that he had been murdered.
Responding to a series of questions posed by the commission’s Attorney Patrice Henry, Harry said his son was working at a mining camp in Lindo Creek with (Leonard) Arokium at the time of his death. Bonny Harry was a husband and father of three girls.
Winston Harry told the commission that his son had returned home in March, 2008 upon the passing of his mother. He was living in Zorg on the Essequibo Coast, approximately three miles from his father’s Annandale home.

Harry said approximately two months after seeing his son, he got the devastating news that he had been murdered. He was at the Supenaam Stelling when he was approached by a woman known to the family.

“She asked me if I hear anything, I said no, what happened,” Harry recalled as he broke down in tears.
After a small break, he continued “She said that Bonny died. He get shoot up. Eight men get shoot up at Lindo Creek.”

The elderly man said several days after on the television, the names of the eight murdered miners were announced. His son was among the set. “After then, couple days after I turn on my TV and the President at the time…He got on the TV and said that ‘Fine Man’ killed them, so after I hear that, I said well we ain’t get nothing to get, cause is Fine Man.”

According to Harry, aside from what he heard on the streets and on the television, he was never formally informed about the death of his son. Shortly after receiving the news, Bonny’s family and close friends held a memorial service at a Methodist Church in Zorg.
The elderly man said a few years ago he was approached by a young policeman, who questioned what should be done with the remains of his son. Prior to that Harry said he had provided a DNA sample for testing.

Maureen Harry, Bonny’s wife, subsequently took the stand. For her, Bonny was a husband, father, and the breadwinner of the family. “He never wanted me to work,” Maureen told the commission, while adding that her husband was the sole provider of the family.

According to her, Bonny would return to their Zorg, Essequibo Coast home from the interior location where he worked during the Easter or August holiday, but in 2008, he returned in March after receiving news that his mother had passed. That was the last time she saw him.

Maureen told the commission even before she had got the news that her husband was murdered, she knew something was not quite right.

“Before we get message that he died, I know that his spirit was in the house. Because one night we all went into bed, myself and was two daughters then because the other one, she was in nursing school in Linden, so we went into bed and about 20 minutes after we heard this heavy walking in the house,” she recalled.

According to Maureen, she was never formally informed by the police that her husband was murdered, nor was she informed of funeral arrangements for the remains. She said once some Neighbourhood Police visited her home to enquire, but she wasted no time in sending her away.

Fighting the tears from flowing, Maureen Harry thanked the President and government for launching the CoI into the massacre that struck the nation in June, 2008.
Dax Arokium, Cedric Arokium, Compton Speirs, Horace Drakes, Clifton Wong, Lancelot Lee, Bonny Harry and Nigel Torres were the miners killed and burnt at Lindo Creek. Their charred remains were discovered by the owner of the mining operation, Leonard Arokium on June 21, 2008.