–claims they were paid $150,000

THE Guyana Police Force on Thursday made a breakthrough in its investigations surrounding the setting of a fire at the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) building at Burnham Drive, Wismar, Linden, on July 14, 2020.
According to the police, Teon February, called “Nut”, a 23-year-old labourer of Canvas City, Wismar, and Marlon Hunter, called “Bushy”, a 21-year-old of Silver Town, Wismar were arrested in relation to the said matter and others. Both February and Hunter will be charged for the arson.

The police release further stated in a release that February, during a video interview conducted on July 7, 2020 at about 18:00 hours, admitted his involvement in the setting of the fire, in that he reportedly said that he was contacted by a resident of Wismar on the night of July 13, 2020 regarding the burning of the building.
The suspect allegedly said that he asked Hunter, who’s his cousin, to join him, and on the night in question, sometime after 22:00 hours, the Wismar resident picked them up in a silver Toyota Note motorcar and took them to Burnham Drive where the building was pointed out.

The police in its release said that February claimed that the Wismar resident told him that he wanted the building set on fire the same night, and that they would receive $150,000 on completion of the task.
The Wismar resident reportedly gave the cousins a yellow five-gallon bottle of gasoline, which he had in his car trunk at the time and left. February allegedly said they hid the ‘gas’ in some nearby bushes a short distance from the GECOM building and went home.
He said that at around midnight on July 14, 2020, he and his cousin returned to the location on foot and retrieved the ‘gas’, and thereafter, entered the compound from a side gate and later gained access to the GECOM building from the back door.

February allegedly told the police that once inside the building, he and his cousin went to what appeared to be a storeroom in the upper flat of the building, and that after throwing the gas around the room and lighting a fire, there was an explosion, which caused them to receive burns to their feet.
February said they escaped the scene, and went home, using the same route they took to get to the building. On their arrival home, three relatives were there, and they were informed about what had transpired. One family member assisted them with tending to the burns. The same night, the Wismar resident reportedly went to the cousins’ home where $75,000 was handed to February, who later gave the money to Hunter.

The following morning, the Wismar resident reportedly handed over the remaining $75,000. After that date, February said he saw the man several times, but he did not say anything about the incident. He added that the man told him that the reason for burning the building was because GECOM was taking too long to swear in Mr. David Granger.
Marlon Hunter was next interviewed on camera, and he supported the story told by February. Investigations are in progress.
The man who hired them was arrested on Thursday, and is assisting the police with their investigation.
The police indicated in the release that investigators are also pursuing an official in Linden, who is said to be the intellectual author behind the burning of the building.