…lawyers question extended detention of suspects
(Kaieteur News) – Amid mounting allegations of constitutional overreach and police misconduct, 33-year-old driver and contractor Jimol Murphy appeared virtually before Magistrate Shareefah Parks at the Fort Wellington Magistrate’s Court on Thursday, charged in connection with the alleged abduction of two missing Surinamese nationals.
Murphy, of Vigilance, East Coast Demerara (ECD), who is the brother of US-sanctioned businessman, Mark ‘Demon’ Cromwell, was released on $1 million station bail shortly before being formally charged. He was not required to plead to the indictable charge and was placed on $1 million court bail. The matter has been adjourned to October 19, 2026.
Murphy in handcuffs leaving the Georgetown Magistrates Court
According to a police press release, Murphy was arrested on Friday, September 25, following investigations into the alleged disappearance of 28-year-old Van Dalen Lorenzo and 29-year-old Derryl Danillo. The two Surinamese men were last seen on Saturday, August 29, at Rosignol, West Bank Berbice. However, Kaieteur News understands that the legal proceedings have been overshadowed by accusations from the defence team and Cromwell, who claim that the Guyana Police Force (GPF) engaged in illegal detentions, procedural abuses, and forced charges to cover an incomplete investigation.
Speaking with Kaieteur News, defence attorney Siand Dhurjon and his team detailed a series of alleged constitutional violations suffered by Murphy, Cromwell’s wife, Nafisa Cromwell, and another associate, Kevin Critchlow. According to the defence counsel team, suspect detentions repeatedly violated the mandatory 72-hour constitutional threshold without valid judicial extensions.
Defence counsel stated that after Nafisa Cromwell voluntarily presented themselves to the station with legal representation, the initial statutory 72-hour period expired on Sunday without bail being granted.
“They lied and said that they had an extension,” defence counsel stated. “They never got an extension until Monday. So, on Sunday, she was illegally detained.”
The defence further disclosed that court-ordered timelines granted on Monday were subsequently ignored by law enforcement. Despite a secondary 72-hour extension expiring on Wednesday morning at 11:00 AM, suspects remained in custody, forcing defence counsel to file a Writ of Habeas Corpus. Nafisa Cromwell, who was held for over six days without timely extensions, and other detainees were only released late Wednesday night on $1 million station bail each, hours before Murphy was officially charged.
Lawyers also alleged that police detained associate Kevon Critchlow without cause after the police requested someone to drive Nafisa Cromwell’s vehicle to the station for forensic inspection. Kaieteur News understands that despite police executing forensic sweeps and searching of vehicles for physical evidence, including blood, hair, or DNA traces, investigators found no incriminating material linking the vehicles or the suspects to any crime. “There’s no proof of the abduction, so he was given bail,” the defence emphasised, arguing that the charge was laid precipitously. “The persons are missing, but they’re trying to say that it was an abduction without any proof… They were given an alibi and they still decided to charge. Their file is incomplete; it’s charged without completing the investigation.”
Mark Cromwell during his live video
The developments prompted an explosive, broadside reaction from Mark Cromwell during a live broadcast on his social media page on Thursday afternoon. Cromwell vehemently denied his family’s involvement in the disappearance of the Surinamese nationals, maintaining that neither he, his wife, nor his brother had ever encountered the missing men. Cromwell accused senior officers at Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of systemic corruption, alleging that investigators targeted his family due to personal vendetta and extortion practices rather than factual evidence. “My wife ain’t do nothing, she ain’t fear nothing,” Cromwell said, recounting how his wife voluntarily accompanied ranks to CID headquarters to assist with enquiries. “They extend this thing to 72 hours after them done lock my wife up… They collect the car, they do forensic, they check for blood, they didn’t see nothing.”
Cromwell insisted that video surveillance confirms his brother was dropping off family members and was not around at the time of the alleged Rosignol abduction, accusing law enforcement of fabricating witness statements and pressuring local drivers to construct a narrative. “They see the video footage, see my brother driving… whatever my wife say and what he say, corresponding,” Cromwell asserted. “They know Jimal was in town… You ain’t see no blood, you ain’t see no hair, but you still charging.” Police investigations into the whereabouts of Lorenzo and Danillo remain ongoing as the case against Murphy awaits its next court hearing on October 19.
Source: Kaieteur News
