Wanted bulletin for “ghost fraudster”, D’Urban Street man

Eccles property fraud

The Guyana Police Force (GPF) is now seeking the public’s assistance in identifying the man whose picture is on a suspected bogus identification card – which was used for the fraudulent transfer of a property situated by the public road at Eccles, East Bank Demerara (EBD).

Further, Police have also issued a wanted bulletin for 45-year-old Alistair Michael Mitchell of Lot NN D’Urban Street, Wortmanville, Georgetown in connection with the matter.
The men are wanted for fraud committed at the Deeds Registry during the year 2017.
Reports are that the bogus ID card, which bore the name Mohamed Wazir, was used to file an application in 2008 for the transfer of a transport through the High Court.
The landowner, Rohit Lall, become aware of the fraudulent transfer when he attempted to pay his rates and taxes for his Lots B and C, Eccles property at the Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC). He was informed that the property had been transferred to one Mohamed Wazir of Fourth Street, Herstelling, EBD.
Following this, Lall filed a Police report.
As Police probed the matter, it was discovered that the lots after being transferred to Wazir were further sold to a company on the East Bank that manufactures toilet tissue for some $35 million.

However, that transaction was not fully processed as the original owner— Lall – intervened before the property was advertised in the Gazette for passing to the company.
Guyana Times understands that Wazir had reportedly appointed a Guyanese woman of Chinese descent as the Power of Attorney for the property and had her sell the land to the manufacturing company.
Further, a Police source close to the investigation had told this newspaper that the woman was hauled in for preliminary questioning at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) at Eve Leary and was scheduled to be questioned again.
Meanwhile, the Notary Public, a former Magistrate, who executed the Power of Attorney for the property to the woman, was also called in to CID headquarters for questioning.
As the Police continue to investigate the issue which initially started off as transport fraud, all angles are being looked at including whether the woman is the actual architect behind the crime or is in fact a victim as well.
The Police source indicated that the latter might be the case, since some money was paid by the woman to Wazir, who is yet to be found.
Conversely, the Legal Affairs Minister believes that there is an integrated conspiracy at work in committing these acts of fraud, noting that no one person could pull such off.
Meanwhile, initial investigations had let to the arrest of a 37-year-old former staffer of the High Court Registry who is attached to a realty firm.
However, the staffer was released from custody on March 20 on $200,000 bail after the statutory 72-hour detention period expired.
According to the Police, he was the person who took the transport in Wazir’s name to the Eccles NDC along with photocopies of Wazir’s identification card for the name change in the records there.
He told Police at the CID headquarters that the transport and photocopied ID were given to him by someone called “Max” to take to the NDC.
He was, however, unable to provide any contact information for Max.
This publication was informed that all the records pertaining to the court order transferring the land from Lall to Wazir have disappeared.
Further, Police had also made checks at the address given for Wazir, but were informed that no one by that name lived there.
Anyone with information that may lead to the arrest of the wanted individuals is asked to contact the Police on telephone numbers 226-1389, 227-2128, 226-7476, 226-7065, 227-9271, 227-1611, 227-1149, 227-1270, 225-6940-9, 225-3650, 226-1928, or 911 or at the nearest Police Station. (G15)