Two Guyanese men have been discharged, while a Venezuelan woman has been committed to stand trial, following paper committal proceedings in the case stemming from the deadly explosion at the Mobil Service Station in Georgetown last October.
At the Leonora Magistrates’ Court on Monday, Principal Magistrate Alisha George upheld a no-case submission made on behalf of Wayne Correia, 44, and Ramesh Pramdeo, 51, and dismissed the charges against them.
Their co-accused, 33-year-old Venezuelan national Jennifer Rodriguez, was, however, committed to stand trial after the court found that enough evidence existed at this stage to justify sending the matter to the High Court.
In examining the case against Correia, the magistrate found that the evidence did not establish that he knew of any alleged terrorist plot or that he intended to aid such a plan.
The court heard that Alexander Bettencourt, one of the men charged in connection with the explosion, had contacted Correia about a boat engine and later sought a taxi contact. Correia then connected him to Pramdeo.
Although the prosecution pointed to inconsistencies in Correia’s account, including issues relating to call records, the magistrate found that the material before the court raised suspicion at best and remained compatible with innocent conduct. Pramdeo’s situation was assessed along similar lines.
The court heard that he had been contacted by Correia, picked up Bettencourt and the alleged main suspect, Daniel Alexander Ramirez Poedemo, from Parika, transported them to a hotel, assisted in selling gold on their behalf, and initially paid for accommodation before being repaid.
Still, Magistrate George found that the prosecution had not shown that Pramdeo knew of any criminal design or that he deliberately acted to support terrorism.
The court ruled that his conduct could just as easily be viewed as routine assistance provided without knowledge of any unlawful scheme.
Rodriguez’s matter took a different course. After independently reviewing the evidence against her, the magistrate concluded that there was material capable of supporting the view that she assisted Poedemo after the incident while allegedly knowing that he was being sought by police.
The court relied significantly on a statement from Parmanand Persaud and on a recorded audio and video interview dated October 28, 2025, in reaching that conclusion.
As a result, Rodriguez was committed to stand trial at the next sitting of the Demerara Criminal Assizes.
Meanwhile, in the related main proceedings before Acting Chief Magistrate Faith McGusty, more time was granted for the defence to file submissions after Poedemo again claimed sole responsibility for the explosion.
Attorney-at-law Shellon Boyce, who represents Poedemo, asked the court for an additional two weeks to complete a proposal to prosecutors based on her client’s repeated admissions.
Boyce said discussions had advanced, but more time was needed to finalise the document. Poedemo has repeatedly maintained that he acted alone and that the other accused should be released.
That position was first raised in March and was repeated again during Monday’s hearing.
Prosecutor Mandel Moore did not oppose the extension, but urged that deadlines be strictly observed, noting that the prosecution would also need time to respond.
Magistrate McGusty ordered the defence to submit its proposal by May 4, with a further report to be made by May 20.
She made it clear that if there is no meaningful progress, the committal proceedings will continue. The magistrate also stressed that Poedemo’s admissions alone cannot determine the fate of the other accused, since those matters must be independently considered by the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Poedemo remains jointly charged with fellow Venezuelans Jhonny Boodram, 27, and Alexander Bettencourt, along with 33-year-old Guyanese Krystal LaCruz.
All are facing terrorism-related charges and remain on remand.
The proceedings arise from the October 26, 2025 explosion at the Mobil Service Station at Regent and King streets, Georgetown, which killed six-year-old Soraya Bourne and left several other persons injured.
