2020 election fraud trial: Court sees videos from inside Ashmins building after tabulation was halted

The election fraud trial continued on Wednesday before acting Chief Magistrate Faith McGusty at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts, with further testimony from People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) elections agent, Sasenarine Singh. The court viewed several videos Singh recorded of March 4, 2020, capturing the chaos at the Ashmins building when the tabulation of Statements of Poll (SOPs) was halted.
In the videos several persons involved in the elections could be seen, including the then Presidential candidate for the Liberty Justice Party (LJP), Lennox Shuman, a then APNU+AFC elections agent, and former Minister of Indigenous Affairs, Sydney Allicock. In another video, then Chief Elections Officer (CEO) Keith Lowenfield can also be seen.
At one point someone identified as a staff member of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) can be seen trying to hide behind a post in the room, the video shows.

In the video Singh was recording a table at the end of the room with documents on it, which in court he identified as the Statement of Polls (SOPs), which were being used to tabulate the Region Four results for the March 2, 2020, General and Regional Elections (GRE).
In the background of the video, persons can be heard shouting things such as “Not one box was verified,” while Singh has a conversation with someone about staying in the room to keep watch over the unprotected SOPs.
“Are you watching the Statement of Polls? Well, you and I have a common interest then; that means we’re brothers,” Singh notes to someone off camera.
Giving testimony, Singh added that it was during this time that officials and stakeholders were simply standing around waiting.
“This was the waiting period after we were waiting for… we see several gentlemen just waiting around in the room; we were all just waiting. I don’t know the gentleman [GECOM staff] trying to hide behind the post,” Singh said.
Another video from March 4 shows the chaos that broke out after the then Region Four Returning Officer, Clairmont Mingo, fell ill and was hospitalised. In the video, several election agents from various political parties can be seen arguing that the tabulation can continue with a Deputy RO; however, a GECOM staff member can be seen arguing against this. Lowenfield is seen among those in the crowd.
Following the smooth start to the tabulation of the Region Four results on March 3, 2020, on March 4, the situation took a turn for the worst when the tabulation was expected to continue. In his testimony earlier this week, Singh had given testimony noting that some 471 of the total 879 SOPs for Region Four had been tabulated without issue before the situation broke down.
At the resumption of the tabulation, attempts were made to have the tabulation done using a created spreadsheet, rather than the certified SOPs. This situation was later challenged in the High Court, where it was ordered that the official SOPs had to be used.
Mingo and Lowenfield are currently among nine persons jointly charged with conspiracy to commit electoral fraud in relation to the tabulation of votes for Region Four.
Collectively, the nine persons are currently facing 19 charges of conspiracy to commit electoral fraud for the events that occurred following the March 2, 2020, General Elections.
Aside from Mingo and Lowefield, those charged include former Deputy CEO Roxanne Myers, former A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) Minister Volda Lawrence, APNU+AFC Chief Scrutineer Carol Joseph, and former Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) employees Enrique Livan, Sheffern February, Michelle Miller, and Denise Bobb-Cummings.
The trial is set to continue today.