Convicted drug trafficker kills ex-girlfriend; attempts suicide

Police have launched an investigation into the murder of 30-year-old Marissa Beete, an employee of the Culture, Youth and Sport Ministry, who was fatally shot at her home on Tuesday evening in what appears to be a suspected murder-suicide attempt.
Reports are that the incident occurred sometime between 18:15h and 19:00h at Lot 706 Recht-Door-Zee, West Bank Demerara (WBD).
The suspect, 47-year-old Ghalee Khan, a security officer attached to a private security company, is currently hospitalised with what investigators believe to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.

Police said that preliminary investigations reveal that Beete and Khan had been in a romantic relationship for the past two years. However, the relationship reportedly ended recently due to a misunderstanding.
According to reports, at around 16:15h on Tuesday, Beete was at home with her 62-year-old mother, when she received a phone call from Khan, who expressed a desire to speak with her. Despite her mother’s warnings, Beete allowed the man into the home.
The mother told investigators that she gave the pair privacy by moving to the back of the house. Not long after, she heard her daughter call out “Mommy,” followed by the sound of a gunshot.
Rushing to the living room, the woman discovered her daughter slumped on the ground, bleeding from a wound to the head. She also saw Khan standing nearby, holding what appeared to be a firearm.
The grieving mother recounted that she attempted to disarm the suspect, during which another shot was discharged in an unknown direction. Khan then allegedly shoved her to the floor and turned the weapon on himself, shooting himself once in the head.
Public-spirited citizens rushed both Beete and Khan to the West Demerara Regional Hospital (WDRH). Beete was pronounced dead on arrival. Khan remains under medical supervision.
Upon examining Beete’s body, investigators observed a bullet wound above her right eye. Her remains were transported to the Ezekiel Funeral Parlour, where a post-mortem examination is pending.
At the scene, police recovered a firearm and three live rounds of ammunition.
Khan was arrested back in 2020 after arriving at the John F Kennedy (JFK) International Airport, in New York, for cocaine trafficking.

It was reported that Khan had his lawyers strike a deal with United States (US) authorities over pending narcotics trafficking charges that he has in the US before he boarded a plane destined for JFK Airport.
Reports are that as soon as the American Airlines flight landed, US law enforcement boarded the plane and requested that everyone remain seated. The officers then proceeded to Khan’s seat, immediately arrested him, then removed him from the plane.
Khan was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison in the US before being deported to Guyana. He however only served 18 months in prison after striking a plea deal with US law enforcement officials.
In 2009, Khan had faced drug trafficking charges in Guyana. In 2008 he was arrested and charged in the state of Brooklyn for allegedly participating with another Guyanese in a “cocaine drop-off”. Reports are that the US court had released him on bail pending the trial but he reportedly escaped to Guyana. As such, an arrest warrant was issued for him in the US.