Latest update February 17th, 2025 9:42 PM
Aug 10, 2017 News
Luanna Walker, the woman who allegedly warned Andriff Gillard not to frame businessman Nizam Khan for the plot to kill President Granger, yesterday contended that the assassination story was a fabrication.
Walker, called ‘Diva,’ took the witness stand yesterday at the Commission of Inquiry into the matter.
She testified that there was an ongoing dispute between Gillard and the businessman, which prompted him to come with a plan to frame him for the assassination plot.
The witness vaguely recalled that she had encouraged Gillard to “wuk obeah” on the businessman instead of framing him for assassination. She said that she had known Khan, by seeing a few times when he came to the salon, where Gillard had rented a work station from her.
But the witness said she could not give details such as time and date in which the conversation between herself and Gillard took place. However, she maintained that Gillard promised her that he would ‘loss’ Khan away in jail.
“I told him [Gillard] don’t do that. You know ungratefulness is worse than witchcraft. I told Andriff don’t do that, this is a person that put him on his feet, better you go and work obeah on the man than staining him like that.”
According to the witness, one of Gillard’s reasons for wanting to get Khan in trouble with the law, was the fact that Gillard had claimed the businessman “wanted to deh with his wife.”
“He say Diva, when I finish doing what I have to do, I will loss him away in jail, he tell me you know how long he ask me to kill the President.”
Additionally, the witness claimed that Gillard’s wife told her that her husband was planning something bad against Khan. Walker told the commission too that Gillard would constantly abuse his spouse.
Walker said that she decided to go to the police with information about Gillard after she read about the COI into the plot to kill the President. She said that she spoke to her attorney before giving the statement. However, when she was asked about the name of her lawyer, the witness said that she could not recall.
Last week, Police Detective Jermaine Laundry told the Commission that the police had acquired a statement from a woman, who essentially reported that Andriff Gillard had planned to frame businessman, Nizam Khan.
While in the witness box, Laundry had read out loud a six- page statement provided by Luanna Walker. Walker was a former landlord of Gillard. In the Statement given on July 19, last, the woman detailed to the police, Gillard had planned to frame businessman, Nizam Khan, for a plot to kill President Granger.
Walker, of Diamond Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara, had related to the police that Gillard, who was a barber, had rented a space at her premise to ply his trade.
She said that the man had lived in close proximity to her and that she had briefly known businessman, Nizam Khan.
According to the statement which Walker gave the police, Gillard had told her that he had been involved in a legal dispute over a property. The woman had told investigators of a conversation she had with Gillard in which he blamed the businessman for orchestrating his removal from the said property; a property which he wanted to purchase.
She said that Gillard told her that Khan had promised to ensure that he rots in jail.
As a result, Gillard told her, “I will go and say he paying me to kill Granger.” The woman however is said to have warned Gillard not to do so.
She reportedly said, “I then told Andriff not to do that; if is not Nizam helped him with his business? But he tell me that the man wicked and he want to ‘deh’ with his wife.
“I then told Andriff not to do that because he knows the man never did …if the man wrongs him he will get his reward; just don’t go and do that.”
Gillard had reported to the police that a bounty of $7M was offered to him to kill President Granger some time in 2015. The man who filed the report had claimed that he went to borrow $6M from a businessman, said to be gold miner. Instead, the businessman offered $7M.
Assistant Commissioner of Police (Ret’d) Paul Slowe is heading the inquiry mandated by President Granger into the persons, places, times, circumstances and events by, and through which, allegations and reports were made of a plan to assassinate him.
The Commission will investigate and review the full range of the Guyana Police Force’s actions and responses to the report of the assassination plot and the extent to which such actions were conducted or executed, with due diligence.
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