Five men were arraigned for the death of four men following a boat collision in the Berbice River when they appeared before Magistrate Wanda Fortune at the Linden Magistrate’s Court. They were jointly charged for the lesser count of manslaughter.
The accused are 39-year-old Marvin Kissoon also called “Coolie Boy” of Lot 8 Sheet Anchor Village, Corentyne, Berbice; 20-year-old Kevin Archer also called “Carl” or “Buckman”, of Maria Henrietta, Berbice River; 23-year-old Ramnarine Punwasie of Lot 12 Number 2 Village, East Canjie, Berbice; 51-year-old Carl Williams also called “Aguttie” of Lot 6 Adalphie Settlement, East Canjie, Berbice, and 38-year-old Nateram Punwasie also called “Rajin” of Lot 12 Number 2 Village, Corentyne, Berbice.
The dead men: Julian McKenzie, Godfrey Denheart, Romario Denheart and Kidman Lindie
They are accused of killing 40-year-old Julian McKenzie; 23-year-old Romario Denheart; 60-year-old Godfrey Denheart and 37-year-old Kidman Lindie on Tuesday, April 28, 2020, following a boat collision at Sandhills Village, Berbice River.
Charged: Carl Williams
The five accused were not required to plea to the charges on Friday and were remanded to prison until June 19 when they will make an appearance at the Kwakwani Magistrate’s Court.
The quartet was killed when a boat transporting marijuana collided with their vessel in the Upper Berbice River.
It was reported that the men were travelling in a boat in the vicinity of Friendship Village, Berbice River, when the
Charged: Kevin Archer
vessel transporting marijuana slammed into theirs and fled the scene.
At the time of the accident, Kissoon was the captain of the boat with four other passengers. However, as they travelled along the River, they noticed another vessel heading in their direction.
As such, Kissoon reportedly swerved to avoid a collision but instead collided head-on with the other vessel. The now dead men reportedly fell into the water
Charged: Nateram Punwasie
and never resurfaced while the five accused fled the
Charged: Ramnarine Punwasie
scene.
They were later arrested and were found to be previously charged with possession of narcotics for the purpose of trafficking but on Friday, they were arraigned for manslaughter.
