Five Corentyne, Berbice men who are all suspected of being river pirates, appeared at the Number 51 Magistrates Court in Berbice on Friday and were all remanded to prison after being charged for the murder of fisherman, Hamechand Sookdeo.
The five, Ramchand Latchman, Ganesh Naidoo, Leon Sammy, Stephen Leacock and Ramesh Singh all of Corentyne, Berbice, were charged with the capital offence of murder under the Piracy Act and were not required to enter a plea.
The men are accused of dumping Sookdeo in the Corentyne river and leaving him to drown during an attack on the fishing vessel that he worked on.
Three other fishermen are still missing and are feared dead. They were also on the same vessel when it was attacked by the five pirates. Police believe they may have all been thrown overboard after being attacked.
The five men were positively identified by another fisherman who reportedly survived the attack and was able to make contact with his relatives.
Additional charges could be filed against the men in relation to the other three fishermen who remain missing.
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