Captain, crew member and transport official charged with murder over deadly Guyana ferry sinking

The captain of the ill-fated MV Barima and two other officials appeared in court on Tuesday facing 72 murder charges in connection with the July 18 ferry disaster that left at least 73 people dead and more than 30 others missing and feared dead.

Police charged 40-year-old captain Kevin Price, 42-year-old chief mate Rondell Dwayne Roberts, and 33-year-old Delon Granderson, the loading superintendent at the Transport and Harbours Department, with a total of 72 counts of murder.

The men appeared before Chief Magistrate Judy Latchman at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court, where the charges were read to them. They were not required to enter pleas and were remanded to prison until August 3, 2026.

Price, captain of the 87-year-old vessel, broke down in tears during the court appearance, saying he did not understand why he was facing murder charges and insisting that there were known issues with the ferry.

“I don’t deserve this, Father God. Father God, you answer my prayers this morning, answer my prayers, Father God. I don’t deserve this, please,” Price said.

He claimed that several problems with the vessel had been known since 2022, including the lack of radar and a search-and-rescue transponder.

“Everybody know that’s an 87-year-old vessel. The vessel got a lot of issues. The vessel don’t have a radar. The vessel don’t have a search-and-rescue transponder,” he said.

Attorney Dexter Todd, who represents the accused men, said the defence team would seek early disclosure of evidence in the case.

“We know so far that the disclosure is that 72 bodies were recovered and so they were charged for all 72 of those deaths,” Todd told reporters. “We listened to the prosecution narrate the facts in relation to why they were charged and who has what responsibility and that the boat was overloaded.”

Todd questioned the allegation that the vessel was overloaded, pointing to comments by the minister responsible for transport and harbours that the ferry was not overloaded.

“We had the minister who is responsible for transport and harbours come out on public television and say that the boat was not overloaded, and that was so pronounced,” he said.

The attorney also questioned how investigators would establish the vessel’s load capacity and actual weight, arguing that the issue would require evidence beyond the loading manifest.

Todd further criticized the speed of the investigation, saying it was unlikely that a matter of such complexity could have been fully investigated within the short period before charges were filed.

“The complexity of this matter, you could not have completed an investigation in this matter in such a short time,” he said.

He argued that the police had already reached conclusions that should have been addressed through the planned Commission of Inquiry into the disaster.

“The police have now done what the Commission of Inquiry is supposed to do and they have already come to a definitive conclusion on this matter,” Todd said.

The attorney said the defence intends to make preliminary legal arguments after receiving disclosure on August 3, describing the charges as unfair and unjust.

Todd also suggested that the charges could prevent Price from giving evidence before the Commission of Inquiry, which is expected to examine the circumstances surrounding the ferry tragedy.

“The primary person who will have to talk is the captain of the vessel, who would have to appear before the COI. Now this man is in prison and that is what they hope to do, to drag him from prison in bangles and shackles before a COI,” he said.

The MV Barima sank on July 18 in one of Guyana’s deadliest maritime disasters in recent history. Rescue and recovery operations continued following the tragedy, with dozens of passengers still missing and feared dead.