• following three year investigation by SOCU

A Herstelling, East Bank Demerara family is currently sitting on remand for laundering over $4.1 B in sales proceeds from biodegradable food boxes sold to local Chinese restaurants.

Kenneth Kellawan Ramnarine, a taxi driver; his reputed wife Yevette Nalini Saroop, a businesswoman and their son,  Damian Brandon Ramnarine were slapped with a total of 268 charges laid by the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) after three years of investigation.

Kenneth and Damian Ramnarine are charged jointly while Yvette Saroop was charged for conspiring with them separately.

The couple were remanded to prison on Wednesday after appearing before a Magistrate.

However, Damian was hauled before a Magistrate on Thursday after turning himself over to SOCU in the company of his attorney just hours before his appearance.

A summary of all the charges against the father and son read that they converted or transferred the sum, knowing or having reasons to believe that the said cash is the proceeds of crime with the aim of concealing or disguising the illicit origin.

Meanwhile, Saroop was charged with conspiring with the pair to convert or transfer the cash in question.

According to Head of SOCU Assistant Commissioner Fazil Karimbaksh, reports reaching his Unit indicated that the trio conducted multiple suspicious transactions at several financial institutions in Guyana, raising concerns that they may be involved in money laundering activities.

“He based these suspicions primarily on the large number of unsubstantiated cash deposits made via Kenneth Ramnarine’s business accounts of Ken’s Trading Enterprise.

“The sources of funds declarations submitted to several commercial banks show that the majority of the deposits are attributed to sales proceeds from biodegradable food boxes sold to local businesses, in particular Chinese restaurants,” Karimbaksh said in a release.

The Head of SOCU claimed that a substantial number of wire transfers, amounting to over $3.7 billion, were sent to 22 companies in China under the pretext of importing raw materials to produce biodegradable products, while other sums were disguised locally totaling over $4.1B.

“…investigators did not find any legitimate source of these funds which the accused wire transferred out of Guyana. The actions of the accused suggested that they may be operating as nominees for some Chinese Businesses and also facilitating tax evasion through Ken’s Trading Enterprise,” SOCU Head said.

He added the investigation commenced in August 2020, during which several prominent businesses in Georgetown were probed.

The accused allegedly listed on their source of funds in their declaration forms that the money stemmed from business transactions done at these businesses.

However, the businesses vehemently denied doing such large transactions with the trio.

As a result, SOCU conducted several covert and overt investigations and operations over the period monitoring the suspects and their lifestyles until enough evidence was collected

The SOCU head disclosed that the family attempted to flee the jurisdiction for the United States of America, on Tuesday but were arrested at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA).