–for causing death of family of four during Berbice River mishap

DIRECTOR of Public Prosecution (DPP), Ms. Shalimar Ali Hack, has advised that the five men responsible for the death of a family of four during a boating accident on the upper Berbice River in late March be should be charged jointly with manslaughter.

The five defendants, Carl Williams, called ‘Agouti’, 51, of Adelphi Settlement, East Canje, Berbice; Kevin Archer, known as ‘Carl’, ‘Buckman, or ‘Davo’, of Maria Emrita Village, Berbice River; Ramnarine Punwasie, 23, of Palmyra Village, East Canje; his brother, Netram Punwasie, known as ‘Ajin’, 38, also of Palmyra Village, East Canje; and Marvin Kissoon, called ‘Coolie Boy’, 39, of Sheet Anchor, East Canje; were initially charged for trafficking in narcotics, and granted bail after pleading not guilty to that particular offence, and were to have returned to court on June 10.

The offence at reference was that they had in their possession 33 kilograms of cannabis sativa for the purpose of trafficking when they were arrested on the night of Wednesday, April 28, at Edinburgh Village, on the East Bank Berbice.

The ruling comes almost three weeks after the 75HP speedboat in which they were travelling ran into a much smaller and less powerful vessel travelling in the opposite direction, causing the death of the latter’s four passengers, among them a father and son.

Police Public Relations Officer, Superintendent Jairam Ramlakhan, confirmed late Wednesday that four members of the quintet have been arrested, while the fifth had been on remand for other pending matters. This time around, they are expected to appear at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan, who will read the charge to them, before the case is transferred to Linden Magistrate’s Court, which adjudicates matters which occurred in the Kwakwani Magisterial District.

Those who died during the mishap were: Romario Denheart, 24, of Lot 41 Stanleytown, New Amsterdam; his dad, Godfrey Denheart, known as ‘Freeman’, 50, of Heatburn Village, East Bank Berbice; Julian Mackenzie, 56; and Kidman Lindie, 50, both of Sand Hills, Berbice River.