The local Shia Muslim community has appealed to the security services and Com-missioner of Police Winston Felix to do more in the case of abducted college director Mohamed Hussein Ibrahim.
Sheikh Salim Ibn Abdul Kadir, one of the local leaders, made the appeal yesterday, expressing the concern of the group that Ibrahim has not yet been found. Kadir is the head of the Guyana Islamic Information Centre based in Linden.
Ibrahim, 35, director of the International Islamic College for Advanced Studies (IICAS) was grabbed last Friday night by two armed men from outside the college's premises at 42B United Nations Place in what seemed a well-planned mission. He has not been seen or heard from since.
Administrator of the college Raymond Halley, 51, who was with Ibrahim, was shot in his heel as he attempted to flee his director's abductors.
Kadir said yesterday the law enforcement authorities had had five days to make some headway in the case. He appealed to the government to lend its support in the probe. Kadir said Halley was unable to provide any concrete information on the abductors.
Kadir, who is a close friend of Ibrahim from his years studying Islamic Theology in the Islamic Republic of Iran, said the issue is being given prominence in the news in Iran.
Kadir, who is now carrying out the functions as senior Shia leader in the absence of Ibrahim, is also appealing to members of the public to cooperate with the police if they have any information.
Classes at the college have been curtailed since the abduction and a decision on the way forward is expected to come from the Iranian authorities responsible for it.
Kadir also confirmed that there has been no contact or calls from the person or persons responsible for abducting Ibrahim. The only calls Ibrahim's wife and the community have received are the daily ones from the Iranian Embassy in Venezuela, Kadir said.
Shahnaz, Ibrahim's pregnant wife confirmed that she has been contacted by the Iranian embassy located in Venezuela about the current situation and the circumstances surrounding the abduction.
She also disclosed that relatives from Iran are planning to come to Guyana to support her during the ordeal.
Shahnaz had told Stabroek News that in addition to his work at the school, her husband operates a distribution service selling carpets and other products from Iran to local retailers.
Questioned about threats the director may have received, Kadir said he had never heard of him receiving any in the two years or so he has been living in Guyana.
He said he felt personally responsible for his safety since it was because of their close friendship that Ibrahim had come to this country.
What was puzzling was the silence of other local Islamic groups, Kadir said.
The IICAS was established about two years ago and is geared towards the promotion of Islamic studies. It also offers sewing and computer classes among others.
Police up to yesterday could only confirm that they are continuing investigations.