More than seven weeks after the ferry sank with at least 72 dead, Guyanese authorities have not announced whether the sunken MV Barima will be raised. Three transport department employees face 72 counts of murder and remain remanded while evidence review and committal dates proceed.
International salvage bids were sought weeks ago, but there is no public update on raising the wreck or on a winning bidder.
Defense teams and opposition figures criticize charging the crew before search and recovery and before the Commission of Inquiry begins.
# What happened
# Legal proceedings
Three employees of Guyana's Transport and Harbours Department—Captain Kevin Price, Chief Mate Rondell Roberts and Goods Superintendent Delon Granderson—are jointly charged with 72 counts of murder linked to the sinking. They have been in custody for over seven weeks.
On September 7 they appeared virtually before Magistrate Ravindra Mohabir at the Charity Magistrate's Court. State prosecutors confirmed full disclosure of evidence had been handed to the defense. The court granted the defense until September 14 to review the materials. Formal committal proceedings are scheduled for November 16.
Legal representation: Price and Granderson are represented by attorney Dexter Smartt with a legal team that includes Dexter Todd. Everton Lammy-Singh represents Roberts.
# Salvage status and public information gap
Authorities sought international bids to salvage the MV Barima more than three weeks prior to the report, but there has been no public update on whether the wreck will be raised, when that might happen, or which bidder—if any—has been chosen.
The wreck could hold answers about the missing and remains of passengers, but there has been no government comment on a timeline for raising the vessel.
# Claims and courtroom moments
Captain Price previously broke down during a court appearance, stating the government-assigned vessel was unseaworthy. He claimed the ferry lacked a functional anchor, radar, search-and-rescue transponders, and an Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon. He also said the inflatable life rafts had expired in 2022.
# Public and political reaction
# What remains unresolved
# Why this matters now
The criminal cases will proceed while the physical evidence on the seabed remains inaccessible. That gap affects the ability of families to find remains and could limit access to key forensic evidence while the defendants remain detained.
# Short timeline
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