Court finds Police Force does not have authority to blacklist at airports

The High Court has ruled that the Guyana Police Force does not have the authority to blacklist people in a bid to prevent them from leaving the country.

This ruling was made by Justice Navindra Singh in a constitutional case filed by Police Finance Officer, Woman Senior Superintendent (ag) Marcelene Washington, who is before the local courts on a series of conspiracy charges.

Washington, through her attorney Dexter Smartt, had contended that she is a naturalised citizen of the United States and has to travel every six months to maintain her citizenship and was seeking to be removed from the blacklist.

She said that by a letter dated September 22, 2021, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs from the Office of the Commissioner indicated that since she was criminally charged, she is now blacklisted from travelling beyond Guyana’s borders.

According to Washington, in October 2021 she also had to seek the High Court intervention to leave the jurisdiction for a scheduled doctor’s appointment.

She was granted permission to leave but the senior officer said, “I am unable to travel to the United States of America without going through a burdensome process of Court proceedings, that has now become unfair and unjust in the circumstances.”

She said the process amounted to a breach of her constitutional rights to the freedom of movement and the enforcement of protective provisions.

The Court upheld Washington’s submissions and ruled that “No such authority is reposed in the Guyana Police Force under any written law in Guyana.”

The Judge also found that the GPF misdirected themselves and cannot restrict the movement of any person around or out of Guyana unless such restriction is provided for in the laws of Guyana or is pursuant to an order of the Court.

Back in June 2021, Washington was charged with the offence of Conspiracy to Defraud for allegedly defrauding the state of $5.1M in falsified food bills.

The charges stemmed from a massive investigation being conducted by the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) in relation to over $300 million committed at the Police Finance Office by several high-ranking officers.