Anthony “Cookie” Ragnauth, 26, has pleaded guilty to murdering Canadian national Neil Whyte, a Supply Chain Manager at Guyana Goldfields Inc.
The plea was entered before Chief Justice (ag) Navindra Singh at the High Court in Demerara. Ragnauth is scheduled for sentencing on November 19.
Ragnauth, a Georgetown taxi driver, was represented by attorney Latchmie Rahamat, while the prosecution team included State Counsel Christopher Belfield, assisted by Simran Gajraj and Geneva Wills.
Court records show that Ragnauth met Whyte, 42, from Toronto, Canada, five months prior to the fatal attack. The two kept in touch via text and occasionally socialised, including visits to bars.
On May 21, 2018, Whyte invited Ragnauth to his Thomas Street apartment in North Cummingsburg, where the pair drank together.
Security footage captured their arrival around 10:00 p.m. and Ragnauth leaving roughly two hours later carrying a black haversack. A security officer later discovered Whyte’s naked and lifeless body on his bed, lying in a pool of blood.
When approached by police on May 23 while driving, Ragnauth initially denied any involvement.
However, after being shown footage linking him to the scene, he admitted to the killing, telling detectives, “Officer, I will tell you everything, and I did not mean to kill him.”
In a caution statement, Ragnauth said Whyte had agreed to be tied up with plastic restraints.
Ragnauth then retrieved a knife from the kitchen and stabbed Whyte multiple times. Following the attack, he stole CAN $260, GY $25,000, and two cell phones, disposing of the victim’s wallet, credit cards, and phones at the seawall.
The post-mortem report revealed Whyte suffered 17 stab wounds across his neck, shoulders, arms, and hands. Several major blood vessels, including the jugular vein, were severed, and the trachea and larynx were penetrated.
The cause of death was determined to be hemorrhage and shock.
Originally committed to stand trial, Ragnauth’s guilty plea now shifts focus to sentencing later this month.
