A Regional Development Officer at the Ministry of Communities, who police say admitted to posting an obeah-linked photo of his sister-in-law on social media, was today charged with corrupting public moral.
Mahbood Rahman, 69, denied the charged which stated that, between February 2, 2019 and February 3, 2019 at Kingstown, Georgetown, without any legal or lawful justification or excuse, he insulted Famida Rahman by way of writing and photography via Facebook, with the intent to injure or destroy her reputation and corrupt public moral.
He appeared before Senior Magistrate Leron Daly in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.
Facts presented by the court prosecutor stated that the victim was married to the defendant’s now deceased brother. The court heard the victim and the defendant have an ongoing problem related to a property which was willed to the now deceased.
On February 3, 2019 at around 21:00 hrs, the woman was at home when she was alerted by a Facebook notification. The woman, upon checking the notification, saw that the defendant had tagged a photo of her along with a bottle containing a liquid substance and a string tied around the neck, accompanied by the words ‘Pammir Maher Magic’, words associated with obeah. He shared the image on his Facebook page.
The scared woman went and reported the matter to the police. An investigation was then carried out and, when the defendant was contacted, he reportedly admitted to the allegation. He was therefore charged for the offence.
With no objections raised by the prosecutor, the magistrate released the defendant on $20,000 bail.
The father of five was instructed to make his next court appearance on May 17, 2019.
