Eccles auto sales dealer slapped with fraud charge
An Eccles businessman was on Thursday morning hauled before the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts for allegedly defrauding a business partner; being charged for seven counts of fraud.
Appearing before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan was 28-year-old Iqwaz Arakhan, proprietor of an auto spares enterprise at his Eccles, East Bank
Fraud accused Iqwaz Arakhan
Demerara residence.
The first charge stated that Arakhan on November 2, 2016, obtained credit by fraud allegedly uttering to Virtual Complainant (VC), Faruk Yusuf a $2,000,000 Bank of Nova Scotia cheque, dated May 31, 2016, knowing that he did not have the funds to satisfy the said amount.
Arakhan was slapped with five similar consecutive charges allegedly occurring on the same day at the said location, each being dated to the last day of each month from June to October 2016. All cheques were written to the effect of $2,000,000, one being to the sum of $2,500,000, a total of $14,500,000.
The businessman stood with a solemn facial expression as the string of charges were read to him, denying them all and opting to enter a not guilty plea.
Defence Attorney Sonia Parag told the court that her client is a married father of one with a fixed place of abode at Eccles, East Bank Demerara, with no previous antecedents or convictions. She added that Arakhan was arrested at his home on May 2, and has been in Police custody ever since, fully cooperating with investigations.
Parag contended that the allegation stemmed from a sales agreement, attesting that her client has a sound defence owing to the existence of letters and phone calls in relation to the payment of the said monies.
She thereby requested bail in the circumstances, adding that the accused is willing to comply with any conditions that may be attached to same.
Arakhan was granted bail to the sum of $700,000 and ordered to surrender all travel documents to the relevant authorities pending the outcome of the Preliminary Inquiry.
