Questions are mounting over the whereabouts of National Border Patrol Director and former Region Four Chairman Daniel Seeram, after a court ordered him remanded to prison following his conviction for assaulting his former wife, but reports indicate that he had not been transferred to the Prison Service.
Seeram was convicted on October 2 by Magistrate Abigail Gibbs of assault causing actual bodily harm against his former wife, Farzana Hamid, following a trial that lasted nearly three years. He was immediately remanded pending sentencing, which is scheduled for November 2, 2026.
His attorney, Nigel Hughes, subsequently approached the High Court seeking judicial review of the magistrate’s decision to refuse bail. Justice Joy Persaud-Singh dismissed the application on October 5, finding no indication that Magistrate Gibbs had acted unlawfully, irrationally or outside her jurisdiction. The decision to keep Seeram in custody pending sentencing was therefore upheld.
Yet despite the High Court ruling, questions emerged about whether the remand order had actually been carried out.
According to recent information Seeram had still not been handed over by the Police to the Prison Service. The Acting Director of Prisons, Nicklon Elliott, reportedly declined to provide information, while other senior prison officials confirmed that Seeram had not been transferred into their custody.
The development prompted Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed to personally question Seeram’s whereabouts.
Mohamed- in a live recording- visited Lusignan Prison and subsequently checked Georgetown Prison on Camp Street, and stated that officers at both facilities confirmed that Seeram was not being held there.
“Where is Daniel Seeram?”
Mohamed said the situation raises serious questions about the enforcement of court orders.
“This is a slap in the face of every domestic violence victim, especially during domestic violence month.”
Mohamed also questioned whether Seeram was receiving preferential treatment because of his position and political connections, allegations that have not been independently established.
He further challenged President Irfaan Ali’s previous public position that persons who commit crimes must face the consequences.
“Was he speaking only to ordinary Guyanese and not to political associates of the PPP?”
Reports have also surfaced that Seeram was allowed to leave the Sparendaam Police Station over the weekend. His attorney, however, reportedly said he was unaware of any such action.
The circumstances surrounding Seeram’s custody have therefore created a second controversy following his conviction, with questions now extending beyond the assault case to whether a lawful order of the court was properly executed.
The underlying case dates back to September 11, 2023, when Seeram was accused of assaulting Hamid at their Cummings Lodge apartment. He was initially charged with assault causing grievous bodily harm and placed on G$50,000 bail. Evidence presented during the trial included allegations that Hamid suffered visible injuries and that Seeram brandished a licensed firearm during the confrontation.
Seeram denied the allegations, but after hearing the evidence, Magistrate Gibbs found him guilty of assault causing actual bodily harm.
Following the conviction, Hughes argued that remanding Seeram before the court received a probation report, victim impact statement and submissions on aggravating and mitigating circumstances effectively amounted to imprisonment before sentencing. The High Court rejected the judicial review challenge, however, and upheld the magistrate’s decision.
Seeram remains due before the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court on November 2 for sentencing.
Until then, a question remains for the authorities: where is Daniel Seeram, and who is responsible for ensuring that the court’s remand order is enforced?
Source: Village Voice News
