–to report to CID every Friday

By Clestine Juan

EMBATTLED Region Four Returning Officer (RO) Clairmont Mingo, along with two other Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) employees were on Monday charged for various offences relating to electoral fraud reportedly committed during the March 2, 2020, General and Regional Elections.
Mingo, 69, of Calcutta, Mahaicony, East Coast Demerara appeared before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan on four charges of ‘Misconduct in Public Office’, but was not required to plea to the indictable offences.

The first two charges against him allege that on March 5, 2020, at High and Hadfield Streets, Georgetown, while being a public officer… he willfully misconducted himself by declaring a result for District Four without ascertaining the total votes cast in favour of each list in the said District Four Regional and General Election.

The case against him is that he failed to add up the votes recorded in favour of each List in accordance with the Statements of Poll, which, in the eyes of the Law, amounts to a breach of the public’s trust… without any reasonable excuse or justification.

The last two charges against him allege that Mingo again committed the same offences, this time round on March 13, 2020, at the same GECOM High and Cowan Streets, Kingston Head Office, when he willfully misconducted himself by declaring a result for District Four in the Regional Election of the said March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections.

Mingo is represented by Attorneys-at-law Nigel Hughes, Ronald Daniels and Darren Wade. Holding for the State are Prosecutors Teriq Mohammed and Shellon Daniels.

Mr. Hughes, in an application for bail, told the court that his client does not pose a flight risk, and that he also has personal health issues.
State prosecutor Mohammed, who thought otherwise, objected, citing the seriousness of the offence.

He justified his denial by quoting former Jamaica Prime Minister Bruce Golding, who headed the OAS mission here to observe the March 2, 2020 election, as saying that never before has he seen a more transparent effort to alter the results of an election.

The State prosecutor further argued that the recent recount process of the elections exposed glaring irregularities which proved that the figures presented by Mingo were either altered in some manner, or forged.

“His conduct shows great disrespect to the people of Guyana,” Mohammed said.
After weighing the matter carefully, the Chief Magistrate released Mingo on a total of $600,000 bail, on condition that he reports to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) every Friday. He was also ordered to lodge his passport at the court, and keep 50 feet away from witnesses in the case. The case is adjourned until September 25, 2020.

TWO COUNTS OF CONSPIRACY

Meanwhile, GECOM Elections Officer, 44-year-old Shefern February was slapped with two counts of conspiracy to defraud the public.
February, of Bachelor’s Adventure, East Coast Demerara, was not required to plea to the charges, which allege that on March 13, 2020 at High and Cowan Streets, Kingston, together and with others, with intent to defraud the people of Guyana… did not use the figures from the Statements of Poll for the purpose of ascertaining the figures to make the declaration of the results for the said District Four Regional Elections of the said March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections as is required by law, thereby resulting in a false declaration being made for the said District Four Regional Elections of the said March 2, 2020, General and Regional Elections.

She was represented by Attorney-at-law Eusi Anderson, Latoya Roberts and Nigel Hughes.
Anderson told the court that while his client was in police custody, she was denied her fundamental right to an attorney by a member of the Guyana Police Force.

Despite the fact that the prosecutor objected to February, too, being granted bail, for fear that she might tamper with the witnesses in the case, the Chief Magistrate also released her on bail, but in the sum of $300,000, on condition that she reports to CID Headquarters, and lodge her passport with the court. She was also ordered to return to court on September 25.

In the case of GECOM Information Technology Officer, Enrique Livan, who was charged for Conspiracy to Defraud, he, too, was not required to plea.
The 27-year-old, who resides at Turkeyen, on the lower East Coast, is also represented by Anderson, Roberts and Hughes.
The charges against him are that between March 4-5,2020, at High and Hadfield Streets, together and with others, with intent to defraud the people of Guyana, while being appointed as a clerk for District Four of the Guyana Elections Commission, for the purpose of the Regional and General Elections of March 2, 2020, unlawfully altered the figures in the course of the recording of the numbers from the statements of poll for District Four for the purpose of the March 2, 2020, General and Regional Elections results.

CAUGHT RED-HANDED
Prosecutor Mohammed impressed upon the court that Livan changed the numbers that were recovered on a computer system for District Four, and was caught red-handed, and that when the numbers were reviewed, there were discrepancies.
Livan was released on $150,000 bail, on condition that he, too, lodges his passport at the court, and report to CID Headquarters. His case was also adjourned until September 25.

Outside of the court, despite the rigid COVID-19 guidelines, several supporters of the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) were engaged in a spirited protest for Mingo’s release.

Several senior Party members and former government ministers, including former president David Granger, Simona Broomes, Khemraj Ramjattan, David Patterson, Joseph Harmon, and Nicolette Henry were also on the ground, showing support for Mingo.
GECOM Commissioners Desmond Trotman and Vincent Alexander were also present to throw their support behind the embattled RO.
The charges against the three GECOM officials were all filed after the Guyana Police Force launched a “comprehensive investigation” into allegations of criminal conduct by Chief Elections Officer (CEO), Keith Lowenfield, and RO of Region Four, Clairmont Mingo, in relation to the March 2, 2020, General and Regional Elections and the events that followed.

On March 4, 2020, during the disrupted tabulations of the District Four count, Livan was questioned by the police after he was accused of abruptly halting the tabulations and secluding himself with a flash drive with GECOM’s information at the Ashmin’s Building.
Party agents and other observers became suspicious when Livan, after complaining of feeling tired and wanting to conclude the tabulation process, left the room with a flash drive and computer, both of which were being used during the tabulation process.
The following day, Mingo allegedly made a fraudulent declaration which was eventually overturned by the courts.
Livan was later promoted by Chief Elections Officer, Keith Lowenfield to perform the duties of a supervisor at one of the stations for District Four during the national vote recount despite protest by political parties.

Lowenfield is already facing criminal charges in the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court relating to fraud, misconduct in office and breach of the public’s trust by providing results of the March 2 elections which he knows to be false.

MINGO’S ARREST
Mingo was on Tuesday last, arrested after court marshalls had been looking for him to serve a warrant for his arrest on criminal charges; charges which were filed by a private citizen, but he’d somehow managed to give them the slip for weeks.

The charges at reference were filed in March by Charles Ramson Jr. not just against Mingo, but PNC/R Chair, Volda Lawrence, as well, alleging they all had to do with the controversial results for District Four.

On Monday last, Mingo did not appear in court as was expected, but Lawrence did, and she was placed on $100,000 bail after appearing before Chief Magistrate, Ann McLennan, on private criminal charges, including conspiring to forge documents to show a win for APNU+AFC at the March 2, 2020, General and Regional Elections.