-injured co-accused to appear in court after hospital release

TWO foreigners, on Friday, appeared before Magistrate Crystel Lambert at Vreed-en-Hoop Magistrate’s Court charged with entering Guyana illegally.
The accused, Juan Ivan Fortool and Manoel Edson Pinheiro Costa were arrested by police on September 13, shortly after the Cessna aircraft they were travelling in crash-landed at 9 Miles Airstrip, Issano, Middle Mazaruni.

Aided by an interpreter, the accused pleaded not guilty to the charge, which alleged that, on September 13, at 9 Miles Airstrip, they entered Guyana by air and not at a port of entry.
They were remanded to prison until September 30.

A third foreign national, who was injured during the plane crash, underwent surgery on Thursday and remains hospitalised under police guard. It is expected that, when he recovers, the police will charge and place him before the court.
Reports indicated that police, acting on information received, visited the airstrip where they discovered a red and white Cessna aircraft with the three foreign nationals inside.

Using google translator, police were told that the plane and another were heading to Suriname when one of them developed mechanical problems, causing it to crash-land.
“As a result of the observation, the pilot crashed-landed the aircraft at Nine Miles which caused one of the occupants to sustain a fractured right arm and minor bruises about his face which he confirmed he received from the sudden impact. The other aircraft crashed, and the body of a man was discovered,” police had said in a statement.

Reports indicated that the aircraft which crash-landed on the airstrip was examined, but no visible damage seen. Police also conducted searches on the aircraft in the presence of the three passengers and on their person, but nothing illegal was found.

A second aircraft, a blue and white Beechcraft was discovered some 600 yards away from the 9 Miles location. Inside was the lifeless body of 49-year-old Brazilian national, Alessandro Eduardo Petravicies, along with 390 kilograms of cocaine.