Court Six of the Georgetown Magistrates' Courts was yesterday filled to capacity, and an even larger gathering of angry persons milled in and around the compound as four separate charges of buggering human beings were read to businessman Kevin Jordon.

Although gay marriages are illegal in Guyana, a wedding between two ... commits buggery is liable to imprisonment for life.

According to the particulars of the charges, Jordon thrice committed the act on November 7, with three different boys, and again on November 2, with another boy.

Kaieteur News has learnt that two of the boys are eight years old, while another is seven, and the youngest is six.

The 48-year-old businessman, a father of 12, was represented by attorney-at-law Joseph Harmon. He was not required to plead to the indictable offence.

Due to the nature of the allegations and the fact that the virtual complainants were minors, Harmon requested to have the proceedings out of sight and hearing of the crowd, and especially the media.

It was the first of many requests that were denied by Magistrate Oneidge Waldron-Allicock.

Harmon next attempted to have the matter tried summarily, noting that his request was in the interest of speed and justice, and contending that the magistrates' court was a proper court for the matter to be dealt with.

Magistrate Waldron-Allicock again denied counsel's request, saying that the matters would be dealt with indictably and the Magistrates' Court would only handle the proceedings of the Preliminary Inquiry (PI).

Harmon then applied for bail, a request that brought gasps from some and tears from others, presumably because there was a possibility that Jordon would have been granted bail.

The attorney, in his request, noted that he was making the application even in light of a hostile environment. He contended that prior reports in the media would have prejudiced the case and affected the court's ability to deal with the matter impartially.

In profiling the character of the accused, counsel told the court that his client had a fixed place of abode at Lot 524 Republic Park, East Bank Demerara, and that Jordon was married and was the father of 12 (another statement that evoked sounds of abhorrence from the courtroom).

He continued to say that Jordon owned a substantial business located at Broad and High Streets, Charlestown , named Jordon's Spare Parts, which has been in operation for the last 24 years.

JORDON THE PHILANTHROPIST

Describing the accused as a philanthropist, Harmon told the court that on a daily basis his client was in the habit of giving money to children in need, “as much as $25,000 a week.”

He added that for the past 10 years, Jordon would make as many as 230 kites for the children.

“I believe that this is evidence of a businessman who has a social conscience and is giving back to the community daily, weekly and annually,” said Harmon.

In urging the magistrate to consider his bail application, Jordon's attorney said that it was his responsibility to remind the court that the legislation provides for a person's liberty not to be lightly taken away, and caters for a presumption of innocence.

“We do not condone the buggering of children…if boys were indeed buggered, look for the real culprit, who may very well be in the court room and was not Jordon.”

Police Prosecutor Hugh Winter, at this juncture of the proceedings, objected to the bail application.

He told the court that while the matter was being heard in court, additional children were currently (yesterday) at the Ruimveldt Police Station giving statements of a similar nature against the accused, and more charges would be forthcoming for Kevin Jordon.

“The man has a right to bail,” said Harmon adamantly, “and when the others come up we will deal with them.”

Bail was eventually refused, and Jordon will return to court on December 10 for the start of the preliminary inquiry.

If convicted in the High Court for the offences Jordon could face life imprisonment.

The accused, Kevin Jordon, retained his composure throughout the proceedings, even managing to smile on several occasions. He was dressed in jeans and a plaid shirt and arrived at mid-morning yesterday.

Even before his arrival, persons started to congregate at the Georgetown Magistrates' Court, and the buzz on everyone's lips related to the allegations involving Jordon and how sickening it was for a grown man to commit such an act on young boys.

When Jordon emerged from the court lockups to be taken to the out room, hoards of people immediately flocked to the courtroom, and while he was being escorted to have the charges read to him, a variety of expletives were hurled at the man.

During the proceedings, the room was packed to capacity with persons even sitting on the floors of the court. The corridor immediately outside of the court room was also packed to capacity, with police ranks having a difficult time controlling the crowd.

When the proceedings came to a close, Jordon was kept in the court room for some time, given the increased crowd, and eventually heavily armed ranks had to be solicited to escort the prisoner to the court lockups, and thence to the prison vehicle which transported him to the Camp Street facility.

At each turn, persons were expressing their concurrence with the Magistrates' decision; some tearfully so.

Students of the Ketley Primary School

The allegations of sexual abuse of students of the Ketley Primary School , which were levied against Kevin Jordon, had caused scores of irate parents to converge on the man's Broad and High Streets business premises on Monday last.

And scores of angry parents had protested his initial release on $50,000 station bail following allegations that he had sexually molested several students over a period of time.

Pandemonium had broken out at the Charlestown school, on Thursday last, after several parents received word that students at the institution were being molested by the High Street businessman.

On that day, the parents stormed the main gate of the institution demanding that their children be immediately removed from the school.

The chaotic scene was ignited after it was alleged that on the previous day, an eight-year-old male student of the school had returned to the school in tears after a recreational break with blood on his pants and streaming down his legs, emanating from his rectal area.

Thursday 11-15-2007