Magistrate rejects bid to halt MV Barima murder case

Magistrate Ravindra Mohabir on Monday rejected an application by the defence to stop the murder case against three Transport and Harbours Department (T&HD) employees charged over the deadly MV Barima tragedy. He ruled that the parallel Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the tragedy did not constitute an abuse of process.
“I say therefore, and this is my ruling, that it is not an abuse of process to have these proceedings conducted in this court,” Magistrate Mohabir declared at the Charity Magistrate’s Court.
The ruling clears the way for the paper committal to begin on November 16 at 10:00h. The magistrate has scheduled December 14 for his decision on whether the accused should be committed to stand trial at the High Court or discharged.
The application was brought by defence attorney, Dexter Todd, who represents captain Kevin Price, also known as “KP”, 40, of Melanie Damishana, East Coast Demerara (ECD), and goods superintendent Delon Granderson, 33, of Fellowship, West Coast Demerara (WCD).
Chief mate Rondell Dwayne Roberts, 42, of Grove Public Road, EBD, is represented by attorney Everton Singh-Lammy, who did not file an abuse of process application.
Todd argued that the criminal proceedings should not continue alongside the Government-appointed CoI into the July 18 disaster. He contended that the legislation governing marine casualty investigations provided a specific statutory mechanism for examining incidents of this nature and contemplated one investigative process or forum at a time.
According to the defence, the matter should either have been constituted as an inquiry before a board established under the relevant legislation or addressed through a CoI established by the President. Todd maintained that the parallel proceedings raised questions about whether the murder case had been properly instituted.
Todd argued that proceeding with the criminal case while the CoI investigated the disaster amounted to an abuse of process and warranted a stay of the proceedings.

No provision preventing DPP
However, Senior Police Legal Advisor Mandel Moore, representing the prosecution, opposed the application, arguing that the Shipping Act contained no provision preventing the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) from instituting criminal proceedings.
The prosecution further contended that the DPP derives the authority to bring criminal charges from the Constitution of Guyana and that the magistrate was required to follow the provisions of the Criminal Law Procedure (Paper Committals) Act under which the proceedings were instituted.

Court’s immediate responsibility
In explaining his decision, Magistrate Mohabir said the court’s immediate responsibility was to assess whether the evidence presented by the prosecution was sufficient to justify sending the accused to trial for murder.
He said, “What this court is concerned with at this time is to determine based on what is presented by the prosecution, whether there is sufficient evidence to permit these accused persons to stand trial for the offence of murder.”
The magistrate added that if the evidence was insufficient, he would have to discharge the accused. He subsequently confirmed that the proceedings would move forward, setting November 16 for the commencement of the paper committal.
The court also established a timetable for written submissions following the presentation of the evidence. The defence is expected to submit its arguments on November 23, while the prosecution’s reply is due on December 7. Magistrate Mohabir will deliver his decision on December 14 on whether the three men should be committed to stand trial or discharged.
The men were further remanded to prison until the November 16 hearing.
Price, Roberts and Granderson were jointly charged with murder following legal advice from Director of Public Prosecutions Shalimar Ali-Hack, SC.
They first appeared before Chief Magistrate Judy Latchman at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts on July 28, 2026, where they were not required to plead to the indictable charges before being remanded and the matter was transferred to the Charity Magistrate’s Court.
Police alleged that the three men murdered passengers aboard the MV Barima when it capsized on July 18, approximately 9.3 nautical miles off Devonshire Castle on the Essequibo Coast. The passenger and cargo ferry had departed the T&HD Kingston Goods Wharf in Georgetown at about 15:15h on its scheduled journey to Port Kaituma, Region One (Barima-Waini). At approximately 23:01h, the vessel transmitted a distress signal after encountering difficulties near the mouth of the Pomeroon River.
There were 179 people aboard, including 18 crew members. The disaster claimed 73 lives, while 76 people survived. Approximately 30 others remain unaccounted for.
Following the tragedy, Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips disclosed that two crew members, including the captain, had tested positive for marijuana during medical examinations. He also confirmed that the accused crew members were receiving psychosocial support while in custody.
The criminal proceedings are continuing alongside a separate five-member CoI appointed by the Government to investigate the circumstances surrounding the sinking.
The DPP has maintained that the criminal case and the commission can proceed simultaneously because they serve different legal purposes.
The CoI is expected to examine the events leading to the disaster, regulatory oversight and the emergency response, and recommend measures to prevent a similar tragedy.