Businessman to stand trial for attempted murder of Berbice woman

Khemadatt Persaud, a businessman accused of chopping a woman multiple times about her body during a violent confrontation at a Berbice wash bay, is to stand trial in the Berbice High Court soon for attempted murder, following a ruling at the Whim Magistrate’s Court.

The ruling was handed down on Monday by Magistrate Tuanna Hardy, who committed the accused to stand trial after determining that sufficient evidence was presented during the Preliminary Inquiry (PI).
The victim, 39-year-old Marcia Badal, was represented by attorney-at-law Joel Edmond. The court was told that another attorney has since assumed responsibility for Persaud. A date for the commencement of the High Court trial has not yet been set.
The charge stems from a January 30, 2023, incident at a car wash in Rose Hall Town, Corentyne Berbice, where Badal was severely injured after being attacked with a cutlass.
It was reported that the accused allegedly confronted the woman and dealt her several chops about the body, particularly to the head. A Police Officer who was present reportedly intervened and rushed the injured woman to the hospital.
Initial Police reports described the woman as the accused’s ex-wife and suggested the attack stemmed from a domestic dispute. However, the victim, in a subsequent interview with Guyana Times denied that claim, stating that she was never married to the accused and was not in a romantic relationship with him.
Badal explained that she had business arrangements with Persaud and that he was expected to be her first client. “My aunt and I started a business together, and he was supposed to be my first client… we were doing business,” she said.
She further alleged that the accused became obsessive and increasingly aggressive prior to the attack, making repeated calls, tracking her movements, and issuing threats to her life, including contacting her parents and telling them he would “destroy” their daughter.
Recounting the day of the attack, the woman said she was on her way to an automated teller machine when the accused intercepted her along the roadway.
“I saw him come out with a large cutlass in his hand… I reversed and drove off,” she said, adding that he pursued her and damaged her vehicle by chopping it and striking the windscreen.
She said that she eventually drove into a nearby wash bay in an attempt to seek safety, but the accused allegedly followed her and carried out the attack.
“I came out of the car; I didn’t even stop the car; the car drove into another vehicle, and that was when he was able to corner me and chop me,” she said.
The woman sustained multiple chop wounds to the head, including injuries severe enough to fracture her skull and affect her brain. She said she was hospitalised for over a month, from late January to the third week of March in the year the incident occurred, and at one point suffered paralysis on the right side of her body and was unable to speak.
“I couldn’t even speak… I was paralysed on my entire right side,” she said. Reflecting on the long-term impact of the attack, she added: “I’m not 100 per cent okay, and I will have to live with that for the rest of my life.”
She also claimed that despite the evidence, the accused has continued to deny the charge.
“He kept pleading not guilty when he admitted in his statement… that he committed the crime. There are videos, medical reports, and eyewitnesses at the scene,” she said.
Following her discharge from hospital, the woman said she remained fearful for her life and eventually left Guyana to continue medical treatment in the United States.
The accused had previously applied for bail on two occasions, first at the Magistrate’s Court and later at the High Court, but both applications were denied. He remains on remand pending the commencement of his trial in the High Court, where a Judge and jury will determine his fate.