An Irish teenager who took a year off to teach in South America has ended up in court on a charge of threatening to assassinate the president of Guyana.
Cillian Crosson, 17, from Lambtown, Ardee, is working as a volunteer teacher with the Project Trust charity.
The court was told he was heard making the threat to shoot President Donald Ramotar in the head on 29 March at City Boy Club at Tabatinga in Lethem.
He denied the charge and was given bail of 60,000 Guyanese dollars ($281.74).
The prosecution objected to bail on the grounds that a threat was made against the head of state and that Crosson was not a Guyanese national.
However, a defenSe lawyer argued that his client was drunk and was not accustomed to local alcohol.
Crosson was ordered to report every Monday to the Lethem police station.
Crosson took a year off before heading to university to study math and English.
He signed up with Project Trust which is one of the longest established gap year organizations and is based on the Isle of Coll off the western coast of Scotland.
In a statement, the charity’s chief executive, Ingrid Emerson, said it had more than 45 years’ experience in sending young people abroad. She said the link with Guyana was first established in 1995-1996.
She noted that on March 28, a group of students went to an Easter rodeo festival in Lethem.
“During the course of the festivities, a Project Trust volunteer was arrested on suspicion of using threatening language,” she said.
“The 17-year-old has since been bailed. Project Trust is working closely with the volunteer’s family and is in constant contact with the Irish consul and the British High Commission.
