Eight Chinese were fined and deported when they appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts charged for illegally entering Guyana three times.
Gangming Fing, Zingju Gen, Zoxie Wong, Zheng Xing, Jun Quing, Aihea Wang, Pin Yen and Wu Jua all stood before Chief Magistrate, Ann McLennan on Tuesday.
The charge against them alleged that on September 1, 2017, at Georgetown, they attempted to use permits, which were not been issued by the lawful authority, that is the immigration department of Guyana, and which they were not permitted to use.
Prosecutor Arvin Moore read the facts of the matter, which revealed that the Chinese were all previously deported from Guyana on two other occasions.
On August 22, the defendants all came to Guyana illegally via Suriname. On the said day, according to Prosecutor Moore, ranks were conducting a road block at Fort Wellington, Berbice where the minibus that the defendants were travelling in was stopped and searched.
An inspection of their passports revealed that they did not present themselves to an immigration officer and as such they were taken to the Central Immigration Department at Eve Leary. They were later charged and placed before the Springlands Magistrate’s Court where they were fined $20,000 and deported after pleading guilty to the offence.
However, while in Suriname, they all applied there for tourist visas and on August 30, 2017 returned to Guyana via a vessel.
They were again apprehended and it was discovered that they were the ones previously deported. As such, their passports were all stamped with a deportation order which is valid for a one-year period and they were deported for a second time.
On September 1, Police acting on information swooped down on a popular hotel and found the said defendants. They were charged and this time taken before the Chief Magistrate.
However, Attorney Paul Fung-a-Fat explained to the Chief Magistrate that his clients applied for permits, which would allow them to stay in Guyana and was unaware that they were given a deportation stamp on their passports.
He petitioned for his clients not to be sent to prison. Magistrate McLennan fined the defendants $70,000 or a default of eight weeks in prison and ordered that they all be deported.
