Latest update November 8th, 2024 1:00 AM
Latest News
GWI to recover $29.8M embezzled from bank account
Kaieteur News – Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Water Inc. (GWI), Sheik Baksh, yesterday disclosed that the State-owned entity would be moving to recover some $29.8M that was recently discovered missing from its bank account. Baksh made that statement during a press conference at the company’s boardroom located on Vlissengen Road, Georgetown.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Water Inc. (GWI), Sheik Baksh.
Last Friday, the company had announced that a fraud was perpetrated at a commercial bank, which led to millions being removed from its account. While addressing the financial irregularity, Baksh took the opportunity to first debunk that there is a $30M or $100M fraud at the company, as reported on in some sections of the media. He further noted, “What has happened is that fraud was committed in a commercial bank, using forged wire transfer documents and our account at that bank was debited.”
According to Baksh, the company has since written to the commercial bank to replenish their monies back to their account, and noted that the police were also called in. Baksh disclosed that while the company will be working on the civil side to recover the monies, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) is working on the criminal side.
Up to press time, this newspaper was awaiting an update from the police on the progress of that investigation.
Kaieteur News had reported that the fraud was discovered by the Finance Department upon reconciling accounts for March 2021. The amounts are $17,489,417 debited on March 16, 2021 and $12,327,515 debited on March 24, 2021. Upon querying, the bank informed GWI that the amounts represent payments made via wire transfer instructions, payable to persons resident in the USA. The names of the recipients are Troy Robertson, of 1405 Brooklyn Avenue, AF2F, New York 11210, and Deyannera Mohamed, of 1998 Pacific Street, Brooklyn, NY 11216.
According to reports, both signatures on the wire transfer instruction letters were forged. It was also reported, that GWI made it clear that it has never conducted business with the aforementioned persons, at no time initiated, or instructed the bank to carry out the fictitious transactions. Police fingerprint experts have since confirmed that the signatures were forgeries. The Bank of Guyana (BOG) has also been notified of this fraud.
Similar Articles
THE BLUNT OF THE DAY
Sports
Features/Columnists
A lesson from the bread lines of America
…Peeping Tom Kaieteur News- If the American elections of 2024 delivered any one lesson to the rest of the world, it... more
Rising Gun Crimes in the Caribbean: Urgent Action required by all
By Sir Ronald Sanders Kaieteur News – There is an alarming surge in gun-related violence, particularly among younger... more
Weekend Cartoon
