Policeman on kidnap charge

POLICE Constable Darryl Samnarinesingh, 33, was granted $200,000 bail with a surety by a Sangre Grande magistrate before whom he appeared yesterday, charged with the kidnapping and false imprisonment of Rishi Permanand, nephew of retired Appeal Court Judge Jean Permanand.

Samnarinesingh, an officer for the past 13 years who hails from  Dukhan Trace, San Francique, Penal, is the second policeman to appear in court charged with kidnapping Permanand.  Constable Anand Ramcharan is the other officer. Samnarinesingh appeared yesterday morning before Senior Magistrate Cherryl-Anne Blake in the Sangre Grande First Magistrates’ Court charged with kidnapping and falsely imprisoning Permanand on December 17.

Permanand was released a day after being kidnapped and returned to his Broome Street, Diego Martin home barefooted, dishevelled and crying. Samnarinesingh appeared in court hours after returning home from a trip to Baltimore to see his ailing mother. Samnarinesingh flew out of the country on December 23. After clearing Customs at Piarco International Airport on Sunday, Samnarinesingh was met by officers of the Anti-Kidnapping Squad (AKS) who executed the arrest warrants on him. He was represented in court yesterday by attorney Prakash Ramadhar, and was not called upon to enter a plea after the charges were read out, since they were laid indictably. He was subsequently granted $200,000 bail with a surety  and ordered to reappear in court next Monday.