Extortion letters sent to prominent doctor
-three since November demanding $2.5M
Stabroek News
June 24, 2003
Prominent gynaecologist, Dr. M.Y. Bacchus has been receiving extortion letters from someone demanding money in exchange for sparing his life and using the names of notorious wanted men.
According to the medical practitioner, the first of three letters arrived two weeks prior to the November, 2002 death of notorious bandit Premkumar Sukraj known as ‘Inspector Gadget’. Sukraj’s name was tagged to that letter.
Then about two months ago, Bacchus said he received a second note, demanding money. He said the writer threatened to harm him and his family if the demands were not met. On that occasion, the writer signed as Shawn Brown. Brown, who was being hunted by the police since his escape from prison last year, was killed in a bloody shoot-out with lawmen earlier this month.
More recently, the doctor said, he received another note, demanding that he pay $2.5M by Friday. According to Bacchus, all the letters had the same wording and were structured in the same way. Only the signatures had changed.
“Mr. Bacchus, this is your last time. Shawn Brown died, but it not over. If you want to live long and happy life with your family, pay we the 2.5 million.
If not, you will not like what will happen. We will died anytime, but if you don’t pay, we will make sure you first go. We don’t have anything to study. Inform the police don’t make sense because is same dead you will die. Pay your money and shut your mouth by Friday the latest,” the last note read, purporting to be signed by a T. Dick, presumably Troy Dick, one of the February 23 escapees.
When contacted yesterday, Bacchus told Stabroek News that the handwriting was the same in all the letters, leading him to believe that they were all written by the same person who might not necessarily have any relation to any of the wanted men whose names have been used.
“It is the same handwriting...I am sure it has nothing to do with these men,” he told this newspaper. The doctor said he had no clue as to who might want to cause him harm.
He has never gone to the police to make a report, but had sent the first note to someone in the force whom he knows personally. Bacchus said one of his friends had shown the most recent note to another senior member of the force.
He said the police have asked him to visit them, but he has never done so, since he would not be able to provide any useful information. All the letters, according to Dr. Bacchus, were posted from the Plaisance Post Office on the East Coast Demerara.
“Apart from leaving the country, what can I do? And I can’t bar myself in my house indefinitely.”
A senior police source said yesterday that he was not aware of the threats, but would follow it up if he knew the officers to whom the doctor had sent the letters. (Kim Lucas)
