IT has been five months since attorney-at-law and People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) member, Charles Ramson Jr., had filed private criminal charges against the Returning Officer (RO) for Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica), Clairmont Mingo, and Chairperson of the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), Volda Lawrence.
Speaking with the Guyana Chronicle, the special prosecutor in the case, Glenn Hanoman, explained that he had made several attempts to try to serve the charges on the two defendants but their locations were unknown.
Hanoman stressed that he had tried to serve the charges on Lawrence while she was at a PNCR meeting at Congress Place, Sophia but he was barred by security officials. He also tried serving the documents at several other addresses for her, but all proved futile.
Additionally, Mingo’s whereabouts were unknown and the court case against the duo is expected to be called on Friday, August 14, 2020, at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.
In March, the now Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Ramson Jr, filed criminal charges, contending that Mingo and Lawrence uttered a forged document with the intent to defraud the public, contrary to section 278 of the criminal law Offences Act Chapter 8:01.
Particulars of the offence stated that Mingo, having been procured by the accused Lawrence, on or about March 5, 2020, at Hadfield and High Street, Georgetown, uttered to the Chief Elections Officer of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), Keith Lowenfield, a Form 24 Representation of the People Act Regional Elections Election Return dated March 5, 2020, knowing same to be forged, with intent to defraud the people of the State of Guyana.
The charges alleged that Mingo and Minster Lawrence colluded with each other to forge that Form 24 document. Lawrence’s signature was affixed to the said document, which had shown a win for the A Partnership for National Unity plus the Alliance for Change (APNU/AFC.)
However, when the PPP/C counted from the SOPs in its possession, it showed otherwise, while the international and local observers deemed the count not credible, and eventually a recount was done which declared PPP/C the winner.