Guyana: 9 soldiers prosecuted for extortion from a clandestine gold panning site

Soldiers in court. Nine members of the Armed Forces in Guyana (FAG) will be summoned to appear before the criminal court for “extortion” from a clandestine mining site.

The facts date back to October 3, in western Guyana. A few “tens of grams” were stolen that day from illegal gold miners, as well as tools present on a gold mining site. The gold prospectors then filed a complaint a few days later. The courts then took up the matter. case and opened an investigation to “extortion“. Placed in police custody on November 5, the soldiers admitted the facts.

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The nine soldiers should be summoned to appear before the Cayenne criminal court.”in the coming days“, specified the attorney general of the court of appeal, Joël Sollier. At this stage, the “procedure is locked, because we are waiting for the green light from the Ministry of Defense before going any further“, he added. The military procedure is being heard by the Cayenne High Court, which has jurisdiction since 2015 in military matters within the jurisdiction of the courts of appeal of Martinique, Guadeloupe and Guyana.

Contacted, the General Staff of the Armies did not wish “comment on an ongoing investigation, out of respect for the instruction“The army also did not want to reveal the unit in question,”for the sake of operational security.” “This procedure, involving a few individuals, should in no way tarnish the image of the commitment of FAG soldiers in the fight against illegal gold panning. Every day, more than 300 soldiers are deployed in the forest to fight this scourge.nevertheless indicated to AFP the General Staff of the Armed Forces.