Sophia execution: Carpenter charged with double murder, remanded to prison

A 23-year-old carpenter was on Monday remanded to prison for the murder of Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Lance Corporal, Daniel Fraser and his Barbadian girlfriend Sheniqua Hodge.

Koabe Grant of Sophia, Georgetown, appeared before Magistrate Roshell Liverpool at the Sparendaam Magistrate’s ’ Court and was not required to plea to the capital offences.

Particulars of the charge alleged that Grant on September 1, 2021, at ‘B’ Field Sophia, murdered Fraser, 26, and Hodge, 23.

Grant was remanded to prison until September 30.

On Monday, Grant was also arraigned before the City Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus for discharging a loaded firearm at Kenneth Reid on July, 28, 2021, at Bamboo Drive, Meadow Brook. He was remanded to prison for this offence also.

The News Room had reported that Fraser and Hodge were imbibing at a shop in ‘C’ Field Sophia and at around 23:30hrs, they left to go home on Fraser’s motorcycle.

As they were heading west along last street ‘B’ Field Sophia, they were confronted by an unknown male who approached them from a northern direction on a bicycle; he discharged six rounds in their direction.

Police said Fraser received a gunshot wound to his chest while Hodge received three shots – one to the chest, one to her right knee and one to the right side abdomen which exited the left side abdomen.

Relatives claimed that Hodge is a resident of Barbados but came to Guyana to sort out her birth certificate to join the Barbados Army and was only here for about a month.

When arrested, Grant reportedly confessed that the main target was Fraser, whom he accused of raping a relative of his earlier in the year. The man claimed that Fraser and two others, including another GDF rank, committed the heinous crime.

On September 1, Grant admitted that he had a confrontation with Fraser at a shop located in ‘C’ Field Sophia. However, he went home and armed himself with a gun. Upon his return, he then saw Fraser and others crossing a bridge on their motorcycles heading in his direction and open fire at Fraser. Both Fraser and his girlfriend were fatally shot.