The two men who were jointly charged for the December 17, 2002 murder of Raheem Abdool, an inmate of the Sad’r Boys Orphanage, were committed to stand jury trial at the next sitting of the Demerara Assizes when they appeared before Senior Magistrate Melissa Robertson-Ogle yesterday.

The magistrate said a prima facie case had been made out against the defendants, Nazir Hamid and Yusuf Rahaman. According to the magistrate there is sufficient evidence to establish such a case.

The defendants yesterday reserved their defence for the jury trial when called upon to say something. Defence counsel Vic Puran who appeared on behalf of both defendants requested that certified copies of the handwritten documents in the case be made available to him.

Puran made the application saying he is likely to have the decision reviewed in another jurisdiction. He pointed out that he would not usually disagree with decisions made by Magistrate Robertson-Ogle, but in his view there is no real evidence that substantiates a prima facie case.

Hamid of 51 Russell and Evans Streets, Charlestown and the former acting CEO of the Orphanage, and Rahaman of 84 Garnett Street, Newtown Kitty, a former inmate of the institution who worked for Hamid, were jointly charged on January 21 for the unlawful murder of 14-year-old Abdool. Hamid is a businessman and also the manager of Rahaman’s Spare Parts Store.

The two are alleged to have beaten Abdool to death at the store sometime between December 16 and 17 last year. They reportedly accused the lad of the theft of a quantity of cash. Using a fan belt and a canvas belt the two allegedly beat Abdool in the store until he died. The lad’s body was found in a drain at Liliendaal Railway Embankment on the morning of December 17.

Abdool reportedly went missing from the orphanage six days before his body was found in the drain. The boy was an inmate at the institution for about five to six years. The Probation and Welfare Department of the Human Services Ministry later launched an investigation into the workings of the orphanage following Abdool’s death.