Wed, Jul 15, 2026
Wed, Jul 15, 2026
Prison officers, others charged with escape of ‘Smallie’ freed
Months after they were charged with aiding the escape of the now dead Mark Royden Williams called ‘Smallie’ from the Mazaruni Prison, a Superintendent of Prisons and five others were on Friday freed after the matter was dismissed against them.
Those charged were Rajmohan Autor called ‘Chico’, 48, a businessman of Parika, East Bank Essequibo (EBE); Frangeliz Jugandry Flores Perez, 28, a Venezuelan national of Kitty, Georgetown; Omar Witherspoon, 26, of Stanleytown, New Amsterdam, Berbice; Conroy Hosannah, 35 of East Canje, Berbice; Oldfield Romulus, 50, of Victoria Cumberland Village, East Canje, Berbice and Alexander Hopkinson, 59 of Bartica Housing Scheme.
On Friday, when the matter was called at the Bartica Magistrate’s Court, Magistrate Crystal Lambert upheld a no-case submission on the grounds of lack of evidence.
The accused were all charged with the conspiracy to commit a felony, contrary to section 34 of the Criminal Law (Offences) Act, Chapter 8:01.
They had denied the charge and was initially remanded to prison.
However, during their second court appearance, they were granted bail in the sum of $750,000 each.
Hopkinson was represented by attorney Bernard Da Silva while Hossanah and Witherspoon had legal representation from attorney Patrice Henry.
The charge was laid days after Williams, in a daring daylight ordeal and assisted by men with high-powered weapons in a speedboat, escaped from the Mazaruni Prison on May 19.
The convicted mass murderer escaped while being escorted back from a visit. The escort party was fired upon with AK-47 automatic rifles by men inside the boat alongside the Mazaruni River.
The boat and its occupants, including Williams, proceeded upstream, past Itaballi landing, while Prison guards and Police in support undertook pursuit.
Williams was subsequently shot and killed by law enforcement officials on June 1.
At the time, Hopkinson was the Superintendent of Prisons at the Mazaruni Prison while Romulus was the second-in-charge.