It wasn’t me

Jamaat Al Muslimeen leader Imam Yaseen Abu Bakr yesterday called on police to lock up those men who were responsible for trying to extort money from Princes Town building contractor Ramnarace “Koyo” Ramlochan, and promised to testify against the men. The Imam vehemently denied that he or any of his members are connected to the Ramlochan intimidations and blamed the incident as  possibly being carried out by a rebel group of youths  that was expelled from the Jamaat for misbehaviour. Abu Bakr said when the police held the men they should not have let them go but charged them with attempting to extort money from Ramlochan. He said, “The allegations against me are absolutely not true. I never had any association with Dole Chadee, nor do I know anything about the house that is being referred to in the report. I did not send anybody to threaten Mr Ramlochan. If I send a threat, would I tell the police I sent it.”

Abu Bakr believes that a rogue group is trying to set him up, not only along these lines, but also politically and racially. He said all members of the Jamaat have identification cards and members of the public must demand seeing these ID cards when anyone claimed to represent the Jamaat. He recalled a similar incident recently in which a newspaper alleged he had threatened government ministers after the discovery of drugs in a diplomatic pouch.The allegation proved false and the Prime Minister had to apologise. Last week Wednesday, nine men and a woman, claiming to be members of the Jamaat, surrounded Ramlochan’s house on Armour Street in Princes Town and demanded that he and his family leave the building within 14 days or pay them $3 million. Failure to comply will result in someone dying on the premises. The gang claimed they were only delivering a message from the Imam. They claimed the building belonged to hanged murderer and drug lord Dole Chadee, and Chadee owed the Imam $3 million. Quick action by the Princes Town police led to the arrest of four of the men who were searched, questioned and released.