Georgetown, September 17, 2025 – The Guyana Police Force has expressed “grave disappointment” after a Georgetown Magistrate granted bail to Keron Daniels, the man charged with throwing corrosive fluid on Jilicia Leitch and Nirmala Sukraj.
The Police said Daniels first appeared in court on September 16 before Magistrate Faith McGusty and was remanded for one day. When he reappeared the following day, the prosecutor strongly objected to bail, stressing that investigators were in possession of a video-taped confession from the accused. The prosecutor also told the court that Leitch remained hospitalized in a critical condition, having lost sight in one eye and suffered severe facial disfigurement.
Despite these submissions, Magistrate McGusty granted Daniels bail in the sum of $500,000.
The Police further noted that Daniels and Leitch had been in a relationship marked by repeated conflict. From her hospital bed, the victim pleaded for justice, highlighting the devastating impact of the attack.
The Force criticized what it described as a troubling pattern in the judiciary, where magistrates continue to disregard the high prevalence of violence against women when exercising discretion on bail. It warned that such decisions heighten the risk of repeat offences, especially since many alleged perpetrators still have access to their victims.
Even with these setbacks, the Police pledged to press forward in tackling gender-based violence, committing to “make every possible effort” to reduce and ultimately eradicate what it called “heinous acts committed so wantonly against the women of our society.”
