– another man being sought for Arimu Backdam double-murder
Wanted: Romain Henry
Nearly one month after his mother took to social media, pleading for the public to help locate her missing son, the police on Saturday issued a wanted bulletin for 19-year-old Romain Henry in connection with the brutal murders of gold miners Zaheer Mohammed Sheriff, Donvan Washington and Shawn Albert.
Another man, 21-year-old Kellon Fredericks, is wanted and being pursued by the police for the said crimes.
Henry’s last known address is Onderneeming Sandpit, Essequibo Coast, while Fredericks resides in Tuschen, East Bank Essequibo (EBE).
Wanted: Kellon Fredericks
Henry’s mother, in a social media post, stated that her son vanished on March 15, 2024, but a brutal crime was committed on March 3. She claimed Henry had contacted her that night, citing illness and stating he was staying with a taxi driver.
However, communication ceased thereafter. Despite posting a photo on WhatsApp, the woman said, Henry did not respond to her messages. She had accused the taxi driver of being involved in her son’s disappearance. He was detained by police and later released on bail.
The mother remains adamant that the driver knows the truth about her son’s disappearance. Fredericks, already known to law enforcement, was the subject of a wanted bulletin in February for armed robberies committed between December 2023 and January 2024.
Murdered: Zaheer Mohammed Sheriff and Donvan Washington
Earlier in the week, Travis Fredericks, 32, and Fernando Fredericks, 28, both miners of Tuschen Housing Scheme, were arraigned for the murder of Zaheer Mohammed Sheriff and Donvan Washington. They face separate charges of being accessories after the fact of murder, and have been remanded to prison until April 25, 2024.
Travis Fredericks and Fernando Fredericks
RECAP:
Fifty-year-old Sheriff, a father of three and resident of Byderabo Road in Bartica, and his 26-year-old porter Donovan Washington, also a father of three and resident of Seventh Avenue in Bartica, were riddled with bullets at Arimu Backdam, a Cuyuni riverine community.
It was reported that two masked men on a red all-terrain vehicle (ATV) carted off from these deceased persons 102 ounces of raw gold, valued at $37 million, and two licensed firearms (a .32 pistol and a 12-gauge shotgun), property of Sheriff.
Investigations later revealed that Sheriff was the owner of a six-inch land dredge operation at Arimu Backdam, and he had ‘washed down’ on that morning before leaving the camp with Washington to go to Bartica on an ATV.
According to the police, the general manager of Sheriff’s operation reported that about five minutes after his boss had left camp, he heard several loud explosions, which he suspected to be gunshots. He said he went to investigate, and, about 500 metres from the camp, found both Sheriff and Washington lying in the trail with gunshot injuries about their bodies.
Police said the 39-year-old manager reported observing that both of Sheriff’s firearms and the gold were missing. He later made a report to the Bartica Police Station.
Sheriff’s body, when examined, revealed that he was shot in his right upper chest, upper right thigh, upper right arm, and left upper back.
Washington’s body, when examined, revealed that he was shot to his lower abdomen, left chest, left shoulder, left hand, and left elbow; and he had four wounds to the right thigh, two to the left thigh, and one to his back.
The scene of the shooting was processed, and one .32 magazine with eight live matching rounds, seven 9mm spent shells, and three .32 spent shells were found.
In addition, Henry was implicated in the murder of pastry vendor Shawn Albert while he was attempting to flee from armed bandits at Onderneeming Sand Pit, located on the Essequibo Coast, Region Two, in August 2019. Henry and others were accused of shooting Albert while he was selling pastries within the Onderneeming community.
It was reported that two armed men approached the pastry van and demanded cash. When the salesman resisted, the gunmen opened fire on them. The salesman reportedly took cover in the bus and ordered Albert to drive. Albert obeyed, but crashed into a fence, and as the bus came to a halt, the gunmen ran towards it and relived the salesman of between $60,000 and $70,000 in cash.
