4 Venezuelans, 1 Guyanese remanded for double murder at Blackwater

CHARGED FOR MURDER AND REMANDED TO JAIL.. L-R Luis Miguel Monrroy, Juan Oscar Calderon Lopez, Nicholas Ceaser, Jhonny Gonzalvez, and Jose Ramon Tovar

Weeks after the bodies of mining camp manager, Suresh Bachan, and security officer Steven Niles were found at a Blackwater Mining Camp in Region 7, four Venezuelans and one Guyanese were on Wednesday remanded to prison for their murders.

Those charged are 22-year-old Nicholas Ceaser called ‘Wild buck’, a miner of Yarrowkabra Village, Linden Soesdyke-Highway; and Venezuelans Nationals 25-year-old Juan Oscar Calderon Lopez called ‘Gordo’; Jose Ramon Tovar called ‘Bashein’,24; 35-year-old Luis Miguel Monrroy and 47-year-old Jhonny Gonzalvez called ‘Sankey Pankey.

They appeared before Senior Magistrate Dylon Bess at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

MURDERED: Suresh Bachan and Steven Niles

The men were not required to plead to the indictable charge which stated that between August 4, 2021, and August 5, 2021, at Blackwater Backdam, Cuyuni River, they murdered 62-year-old Suresh Bachan and 31-year-old Steven Niles a, Security Guard during the course of a robbery.

The men were all remanded to prison until September 20, 2021.

According to reports, at about 18:00 hrs on August 4, upon completion of the day’s operation, the men remained at the work ground where they stayed in separate camps about 100 meters apart.

However, at about 06:00 hrs the following day, the General Manager of the mining camp and several of his workers arrived at the work ground and discovered Niles and Bachan dead in their hammocks.

Bachan’s body was found lying on a makeshift bed with a mattress on his back while Niles’ body was found in a hammock lying on his back.  One AR 15 firearm and a top mat from the sluice box were stolen.

The matter was then reported to the police and following an investigation, the defendants were arrested and charged.

A post mortem examination conducted on the men revealed that they died as a result of blunt trauma to their heads.