Man admits to fatal stabbing of GRA officer

More than three years after the fatal stabbing of Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) enforcement officer Dwayne Daniel Taitt, accused Rawle Lamaison appeared in the High Court on Wednesday and pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of manslaughter.

Lamaison made the plea before Justice Gino Persaud at the Demerara High Court, having previously denied a charge of murder. With the guilty plea now entered and accepted, the court indicated that a full trial will no longer be required, as sentencing can proceed once an accused admits guilt to a charge recognised by law.
Justice Persaud set March 12, 2026, at 14:30h for sentencing. Ahead of that hearing, the court will receive a victim impact statement as well as a probation report detailing Lamaison’s background and circumstances, which will assist the Judge in determining an appropriate sentence.
The prosecution is being conducted by State Attorney M Tomika Lumumba, while Lamaison is represented by Attorney Dexter Smartt.
The charge arises from an incident that occurred in July 2021 at Lot 2 Middleton Street, Campbellville, Georgetown, where Taitt lived with his reputed wife and their two-year-old daughter. At the time, Taitt was renting an apartment at the home of Lamaison’s mother, Jacklyn Lamaison.
Investigators have said the fatal confrontation followed a dispute over a notice to vacate the premises. On the evening prior to the stabbing, at about 17:30h, the landlady reportedly informed Taitt and his family, in the presence of her son, that they had until Wednesday, July 14, 2021, to leave the property.
Several hours later, shortly after 12:30h, Lamaison returned to the apartment and began banging on the door with a piece of wood, shouting demands for the family to move out immediately.
Police reports state that Taitt opened the door and saw Lamaison armed with a knife. Taitt ran out into the street opposite the apartment in an attempt to escape, but Lamaison pursued him and stabbed him in the chest before fleeing the scene with the weapon.
Taitt collapsed following the attack and was assisted by his reputed wife and a nearby security guard. He was rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital, where doctors pronounced him dead on arrival.
A post-mortem examination later revealed a stab wound to the left upper chest, which proved fatal.
Police subsequently arrested Lamaison and recovered the knife believed to have been used in the attack. Statements were taken from witnesses, and Lamaison was later slapped with a murder charge.