A 25-year-old minibus driver who allegedly collected $300,000 from a person after promising to secure a house lot through connections at the Ministry of Housing has been charged with two counts of obtaining by false pretence.
The accused, Karan Ramlakhan, also known as ‘Kevin Singh’, of East Bank Demerara (EBD), appeared before Senior Magistrate Fabayo Azore at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court on Monday.
He pleaded not guilty to both charges and was granted bail in the sum of $75,000 on each count. The matter was adjourned to November 23, 2026.
According to the Guyana Police Force (GPF), the charges stemmed from an investigation into an alleged fraudulent housing arrangement involving $300,000 between September 10, 2024, and September 14, 2026, in Georgetown.
Police said the victim was approached by Ramlakhan, who allegedly claimed he could facilitate the allocation of a house lot through individuals employed at the Ministry of Housing.
Believing the arrangement to be genuine, the victim reportedly handed over $300,000 to assist with securing the allocation. However, the promised house lot was never obtained, prompting the victim to report the matter to police.
During the investigation, police said Ramlakhan reportedly admitted to collecting money from persons seeking housing allocations and passing the funds to individuals he claimed were employed at the Ministry of Housing.
According to investigators, the accused allegedly told them that he received a percentage of the payments in exchange for facilitating the arrangements.
He further claimed that the $300,000 collected from the victim had been handed over to one of those individuals.
As investigators pursued the matter, two additional persons reportedly came forward with similar allegations, claiming that Ramlakhan had collected money from them after promising to secure the allocation of turnkey houses.
Police arrested Ramlakhan on Thursday, October 22, 2026, and subsequently instituted two charges of obtaining by false pretence, contrary to Section 194 of the Criminal Law (Offences) Act, Chapter 8:01.
Ramlakhan is expected to make his next court appearance on November 23, 2026.
