KARAN Ramlakhan, also known as ‘Kevin Singh’, was charged with two counts of Obtaining by False Pretence, contrary to Section 194 of the Criminal Law (Offences) Act, Chapter 8:01.

He was arrested following an investigation into the case which involved $300,000, committed between September 10, 2024, and September 14, 2026, in Georgetown, police said.

He appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court on Monday before Senior Magistrate Fabayo Azore, where the charges were read to him. He pleaded not guilty and was granted bail in the sum of $75,000 on each charge.

The matter was adjourned to November 23, 2026.

Police said in a press release that preliminary investigations revealed that the victim was allegedly approached by a 25-year-old minibus driver of East Bank Demerara, who claimed that he could facilitate the allocation of a house lot through persons employed at the Ministry of Housing.

During the process, the victim allegedly paid $300,000 to the suspect to assist with the housing allocation. However, the promised allocation was not secured, and the matter was subsequently reported to the Police.

During the investigation, the suspect reportedly admitted to collecting money from individuals and passing it to persons he claimed were employed at the Ministry of Housing to expedite housing allocations, in exchange for a percentage of the payments.

He further claimed that the $300,000 collected from the victim had been handed over to one of those individuals.

According to the police, investigators also received two additional reports alleging that the suspect collected money from other individuals under similar circumstances, promising to secure the allocation of turnkey houses.

The suspect was arrested on Thursday October 22, 2026, and subsequently charged on Monday October 26, 2026, the police said.