2020 election fraud trial: Jaskaran maintains election report is accurate under cross-examination

Special Prosecutor Latchmie Rahamat on Thursday said forensic accounting auditor Terrence Jaskaran maintained the credibility, accuracy and completeness of his report as defence attorney Dexter Todd continued cross-examination in the trial arising from the alleged fraud surrounding the March 2020 General and Regional Elections.

Providing an update on the case, Rahamat told reporters that Todd’s questioning challenged the credibility of the report prepared by the auditor.
Jaskaran was initially retained by the Ministry of Home Affairs on August 21, 2020, as a forensic audit consultant attached to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) Headquarters.
His involvement in the specific election analysis came later when, on May 25, 2021, Police Officer Nigel Stephens requested that he conduct a tabulation and verification analysis of certified copies of Statements of Poll (SoPs) from the March 2, 2020 elections.
He was asked to compare the figures recorded on the certified SoPs with the declarations contained in Forms 24 and identify any variations.
Jaskaran subsequently conducted the exercise at CID Headquarters, using a laptop provided by the Guyana Police Force (GPF), and completed his report on July 28, 2021.
“Mr Jaskaran continues under cross-examination. Today [Thursday], Mr Dexter Todd continued the cross-examination, and what he essentially challenged was the credibility of the report,” Rahamat said.
According to the prosecutor, Jaskaran maintained during questioning that the limitations associated with his work were identified in his report and that the report was complete based on the certified SoPs provided to him.
She said, “And on the cross-examination, Mr Jaskaran maintains the accuracy of his report, and he has indicated that in his report, any or all limitations were noted.
She said Jaskaran was also questioned about whether his tabulation and report were complete. “He insisted when asked and probed in relation to whether his tabulation or his report was complete, that he did present a complete report based on all the certified SoPs that were given to him,” Rahamat added.
Rahamat explained that Jaskaran compared his calculations for Region Four with declarations made on March 5 and March 13, 2020. “He did take those SoPs, the certified copies, and he compared the District Four calculations that he made with the declarations from the 5th and the 13th of March 2020.”
The prosecutor also addressed questions surrounding the laptop Jaskaran used to conduct his work and the fact that he did not take the laptop or the certified documents home with him.
According to her, Jaskaran testified that the laptop was provided to him by the Guyana Police Force and that he placed a password on it that was known only to him.
Rahamat said Jaskaran testified that he left the laptop at the GPF after completing his work each day, while the certified SoPs were also returned to Police Officer Nigel Stephens.
Rahamat said the evidence was relevant to suggestions that the information entered into the laptop could have been altered.
“This is important evidence because if a suggestion is made that the data that he placed into the laptop could have been tampered with, Mr Jaskaran has plainly rejected any such suggestions. He has maintained that he put a password on the police laptop and he made his checks to verify that the information that he had put in was accurate,” she said.
The prosecutor also addressed questions surrounding five SoPs that were unavailable to Jaskaran when he conducted his tabulations. Rahamat said Jaskaran had identified the five unavailable SoPs as a limitation in his report but nevertheless maintained that the report was complete based on the certified copies that were provided to him.
Rahamat said, “So, what Mr Jaskaran told the court was that for the tabulations that he did for the certified SoPs for District Four, he found that there were five SoPs that were unavailable.”
“And that was information that he confirmed. His report, he says, and insisted repeatedly was complete because he noted those limitations, and he termed it a limitation in his report.”
Rahamat said Jaskaran continued to stand by the credibility and accuracy of his findings.
“And so, he is insisting that the report he presented was credible and accurate and complete based on the certified copies of the SoPs that were presented to him,” she stated.
Jaskaran faces further cross-examination when the trial resumes on Monday.
Nine persons are currently before the court charged with offences ranging from conspiracy to commit electoral fraud in relation to the tabulation and declaration of votes for the 2020 elections. Those charged include former Chief Elections Officer Keith Lowenfield, former Deputy Chief Elections Officer Roxanne Myers, former Region Four Returning Officer (RO) Clairmont Mingo, former A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) Minister Volda Lawrence and former APNU+AFC Chief Scrutineer Carol Smith-Joseph.
The other accused are former GECOM employees Enrique Livan, Sheffern February, Michelle Miller and Denise Bobb-Cummings. The prosecution, led by King’s Counsel Darshan Ramdhani, alleged that the nine accused conspired to manipulate the tabulation of votes in Region Four and ultimately declare a false result in favour of APNU+AFC.
It further alleged that the accused inflated the coalition’s votes, reduced those of the PPP/C and departed from the prescribed process for ascertaining the results.