N/A Prison escapee jailed for 36 months

A prisoner, who escaped from the New Amsterdam Prison and was recaptured two days later hiding aboard a fishing vessel has been sentenced to 36 months in prison after pleading guilty to escaping from lawful custody.
Budnarine Persaud, called “Kevin”, a 28-year-old fisherman of Lot 101 Block ‘D’, Bath Settlement, West Coast Berbice (WCB) was sentenced on Friday. Persaud, who was charged on Friday, appeared virtually via Zoom before Magistrate Michelle Matthias at the Albion Magistrate’s Court, where the charge was read to him and he pleaded guilty.
He was charged with escaping from lawful custody on September 21, 2026, at the New Amsterdam Prison, Penitentiary Walk, New Amsterdam.
The charge was laid under Section 339 of the Criminal Law (Offences) Act, Chapter 8:01.

At the time of his escape, Persaud was serving a 24-month sentence for simple larceny.
The Guyana Prison Service (GPS) had reported that Persaud escaped at approximately 13:00h on September 21 while working at the new Administrative Building with three other inmates under the supervision of a prison officer.
Two days later, police, acting on information received, went to No. 65 Fisheries, Corentyne, where they searched a fishing vessel.
Persaud was found hiding in the bow of the vessel and was arrested.
He was subsequently taken to the Springlands Police Station and placed in custody.
Police had also arrested six persons, four men and two women in connection with allegedly harbouring the escaped prisoner.