After nearly two months in custody on charges of attempting to murder Police constable Nathaniel Gittens, four Venezuelan nationals were once again denied bail at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on Wednesday, despite fervent arguments from their attorney.
The accused—Victoria La Cruz, 21, a domestic worker; Gabriel Campose, 19, a labourer; Lilbeth Valasquez, 37; and Jesus Herrea, 26, also a labourer—all of Montrose, East Coast Demerara (ECD), appeared before Chief Magistrate (ag) Faith Mc Gusty at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.
The defendants, including two men and two women, were not required to enter a plea to the indictable charge.
The defendants were ordered to remain in custody until February 19, 2025, to allow police to finalise the case file, review closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage, and obtain guidance from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
The defence lawyer argued for the release of the accused under-reporting conditions, presenting a witness, Bibi Khan, to establish their ties to the community. She testified that she had known the defendants for over five years and that they resided a block away from her home in Mon Repos, EBD.
However, under questioning, Khan admitted that the defendants did not have specific lot numbers for their residence. The defence emphasised this connection as a basis for granting bail, but the argument was deemed insufficient by the Magistrate.
Magistrate Mc Gusty denied bail to the four Venezuelan nationals, citing valid concerns raised by the prosecution, including the defendants’ potential flight risk. She emphasised that the defendants had not sufficiently demonstrated ties to Guyana, as highlighted by the absence of specific addresses during witness testimony.
The Magistrate ruled that the prosecution’s objections were substantial and justified denying bail.The incident occurred around 11:45 PM on Saturday, November 23, 2024, on Cornhill Street, Georgetown.
Constable Gittens, stationed at the Brickdam Police Station and attached to the Criminal Investigation Department, was on foot patrol in plain clothes in the Stabroek Market area.
Armed with a .38 revolver and six rounds of ammunition while on Cornhill Street, he intervened in a confrontation involving a Spanish-speaking woman holding a broken bottle and another woman.
As such, the cop approached them and identified himself as being a policeman in plain clothes. While attempting to de-escalate the situation, four individuals allegedly approached the police officer from behind, and one, armed with a knife, stabbed him multiple times.
Despite his injuries, Constable Gittens discharged four rounds into the air, causing the attackers to flee.An alarm was raised, and an Impact Patrol team rushed Constable Gittens to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC).
He sustained multiple stab wounds and has since been discharged from the medical facility. The four suspects, along with the two women involved in the argument, were arrested and taken into custody.
Two of the suspects involved in the altercation were also hospitalised due to injuries sustained during the brawl. One of them, Luis La Cruz, reportedly died from abdominal gunshot wounds while in police custody. Crime scene technicians processed the location, photographing the evidence and canvassing the area for CCTV footage.
