19-year-old woman charged with murder 

A 19-year-old woman from Baramita, North West District, has been charged with the murder of 20-year-old miner Kevin Smith, following a fatal altercation earlier this month.

The accused, Naderia James, appeared virtually before Magistrate Rabindranauth Singh at the Port Kaituma Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday. The murder charge was read to her, and she was not required to enter a plea since the offence is indictable. James was remanded to prison until her next court appearance on 14 October 2025.

Investigations revealed that James and Smith, who were in a relationship and had been living together for about a year in a wooden and plastic camp at Baramita, became embroiled in a violent confrontation on 18 September 2025.

According to police reports, James returned home around 17:00 hrs after consuming alcohol and found Smith lying in a hammock. Upon noticing her, Smith allegedly armed himself with a cutlass and struck her on the left shoulder and right hand.

In retaliation, James reportedly drew a handmade knife from her waist and stabbed Smith once in the left side of his chest. The injured miner stumbled out of the camp before collapsing in nearby bushes.

James fled the scene but later went to the Baramita Police Station, where she provided a statement about the incident.

Smith, a Guyanese Amerindian miner also from Baramita, was pronounced dead shortly after the attack.