Mobil Service Station deadly bombing: Police will continue to explore potential internal or external linkages – VP Jagdeo

…says “Perpetrators, local or foreign, will face the full force of the law”

Speaking on the deadly bombing which sent shockwaves throughout the city and ultimately the country for the first time, Vice President (VP) Dr Bharrat Jagdeo stated that even after the alleged terrorists responsible for the crime have been charged, authorities will continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the attack, including any potential internal or external linkages.

Jagdeo emphasised that law enforcement authorities will spare no effort in ensuring that those responsible for the deadly terror attack in Georgetown will face the full force of the law.
“If anyone, a foreigner or a local, were to try to create acts of or conduct acts of terrorism in Guyana or to undermine the sovereignty of our country, they will face the similar tough approach from the Government of Guyana. They’ll face the full force of the law. It does not matter what nationality they are,” he noted.

Police said they will be pursuing charges such as terrorism, murder, attempted murder, arson, and malicious damage to property against the suspects. Home Affairs Minister Oneidge Walrond had also noted that authorities will be making a case for the death penalty to be applied, which she is confident President Dr Irfaan Ali will sign onto.
On Monday, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) related that the case file was being prepared to be sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for legal advice to determine the next course of action in the investigation into the Sunday, October 26 deadly bombing at the Mobil gas station, Regent and King Streets, Georgetown, which claimed the life of six-year-old Soraya Bourne while injuring eight others.

Four of those injured remain in custody. At the meeting with President Ali on Monday, the relatives were promised “swift justice”, and the Government will do everything in its power to have the lives of those affected return to normalcy.
Currently, nine persons have been arrested and remain in custody for the attack, including the prime suspect, Venezuelan national Daniel Alexander Ramirez Poedomo, who has since confessed to the crime.
According to the VP, even after the charges have been laid against the suspects, the investigation will continue.
“We caught the people; they’re going to face the full force of the law. The investigation did not stop at catching them or putting them before the courts now. That investigation will go deeply after linkages. If the linkages are local, we will go wherever they take us, and if the linkages are international, we’ll do so too. And we will solicit help – external help – to see if those linkages are external,” the VP added.
To date, the GPF has not released any information on the possible motive behind the attack but reported that bomb experts are analysing photos of the bomb that were extracted from Poedomo’s mobile phone. This is to determine whether or not it was a homemade device or one built professionally.
Nevertheless, all that is in the public’s domain is that the prime suspect and accomplices arrived illegally in Guyana via boat several hours before the attack. He also admitted that he smuggled the remote-controlled bomb into the country from Venezuela, which has resulted in the joint services ramping up security at Guyana’s borders in light of an imminent invasion.
Meanwhile, Poedomo, who was suspected of being linked to one of Venezuela’s most notorious criminal networks – the R Organization, admitted to planting the bomb on his second attempt at the targeted location at about 19:30h on the fateful evening.
It was also reported that prior to the terror attack, several of Poedomo’s accomplices had surveyed the area.