Guyana Anti Corruption Network

**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**

**Georgetown, Guyana** – The Guyana Anti-Corruption Network (GACN) today announced that its Press Officer, **Mark Jacobs**, will initiate legal proceedings against attorney **Selwyn Andrew Pieters** following the Law Society of Ontario’s decision to close a formal complaint without regulatory action.

The complaint, filed with the Law Society of Ontario on February 12, 2026, alleged that Mr. Pieters—acting as legal representative for Guyana’s President Irfaan Ali—filed baseless copyright infringement claims against Mr. Jacobs, a U.S.-based anti-corruption activist.

In its response, the Law Society of Ontario closed the complaint, stating that the actions described “does not raise any regulatory concerns” and characterizing the dispute as a “legal issue” rather than a matter of professional misconduct.

“We respect the Law Society of Ontario’s determination that this conduct falls within the scope of strictly ‘legal’ practice,” said Mark Jacobs, Press Officer of GACN. “With that ruling accepted, we are now prepared to take our next steps by bringing this matter directly before the courts.”

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## Background of the Case

According to the formal complaint filed with the Law Society of Ontario, Mr. Pieters filed copyright complaints with Facebook against Mark Jacobs, falsely asserting copyright ownership over a photograph on behalf of his client, President Irfaan Ali. The photograph was taken by **Royal Family Chief Photographer Aaron Chown**, expressly credited as “Aaron Chown/PA Wire/PA Images.”

Mr. Pieters has no proprietary interest in this image, and neither does his client. Being the subject of a photograph confers no copyright ownership—a fact any competent lawyer knows. Yet Pieters knowingly asserted false copyright claims to have the image removed and to punish a critic.

As a direct result of these false complaints, **Facebook permanently demonetized Mr. Jacobs’ account**. He is now indefinitely banned from earning income through ads, subscriptions, or any monetary activity on the platform—inflicting real financial harm that GACN contends was the precise intent: to financially cripple a critic they could not defeat with facts.

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## A Pattern of Legal Aggression: Three Cases, One Strategy

The GACN has identified a coordinated legal campaign targeting critics of the Guyana government, with Selwyn Pieters and other state-aligned lawyers deploying similar tactics.

**Case 1: Copyright Claims Against Mark Jacobs (2025-2026)**
Pieters filed baseless copyright complaints with Facebook against Mark Jacobs on behalf of President Ali, falsely claiming ownership of a professional photographer’s image. This administrative action resulted in permanent demonetization of Jacobs’ account—a financial punishment designed to silence anti-corruption advocacy.

**Case 2: Defamation Lawsuit by President’s Mother (2025)**
Pieters is representing **Bibi Shariman Neshaw Ali**, the mother of President Irfaan Ali, in a CAD$15 million defamation lawsuit filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice against Meta Platforms Inc., Facebook Holdings LLC, and social media personality Melissa Ann Atwell-Holder, popularly known as “Melly Mel.” The lawsuit stems from Facebook publications in which Mrs. Ali was referred to as a “gangster granny” and allegedly implicated in corruption linked to her son. The claim seeks general damages of $5 million, aggravated damages of $5 million, and punitive damages of $5 million.

**Case 3: Libel Lawsuit by Attorney General Nandlall (2024)**
In a related action, **Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Mohabir Anil Nandlall, SC**, filed a $100 million libel lawsuit against the same social media personality, “Melly Mel,” in the High Court of Guyana. The suit accuses Atwell of publishing defamatory statements on her Facebook page on November 21, 2024, portraying Nandlall as “a thief, a murderer, and someone unfit to hold public office or practice law.” Nandlall’s lawsuit seeks damages exceeding $100 million, an injunction, and removal of all defamatory posts.

According to court documents, Nandlall stated that Atwell’s posts are part of a “malicious and spiteful defamatory campaign” intended to lower his status, despite him never having interacted with her. The Attorney General also noted that the government is working with U.S. law enforcement and legal firms to address such instances, which he said can incite racial violence and cause public harm.

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## The Connection: A Coordinated Strategy of Intimidation

The pattern is unmistakable. In each case, state-aligned legal actors have deployed the full weight of the legal system—across multiple jurisdictions and forums—against individuals exercising their rights to free expression and anti-corruption advocacy.

Against Mark Jacobs, Selwyn Pieters used Facebook’s administrative complaint system to file false copyright claims on behalf of President Ali, resulting in permanent demonetization—a financial punishment designed to cripple a critic. Against “Melly Mel,” Pieters filed a CAD$15 million defamation lawsuit in Ontario on behalf of the President’s mother, while Attorney General Nandlall simultaneously filed a separate $100 million libel lawsuit in Guyana’s High Court against the same individual.

The targets differ, but the strategy is identical: use expensive, multi-jurisdictional litigation and administrative complaints to silence, intimidate, and financially exhaust critics of the Guyana government. The Attorney General has openly acknowledged coordinating with U.S. law enforcement to target social media critics, revealing the state’s involvement in what appears to be a systematic campaign of legal harassment.

“These are not isolated incidents,” said Mark Jacobs. “This is a coordinated strategy of intimidation being used by the Guyana government against citizens exercising their rights. They are using copyright law, defamation lawsuits, and libel claims—in multiple jurisdictions—to silence critics. They filed false copyright claims against me on behalf of the President to financially cripple and silence our anti-corruption advocacy, while simultaneously filing multi-million dollar lawsuits against a journalist for saying things his clients don’t like.”

He continued: “The Attorney General himself has openly acknowledged coordinating with U.S. law enforcement to target social media critics. This is state-sponsored legal harassment.”

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## GACN’s Legal Action

GACN is now assembling a legal team to pursue civil remedies against Mr. Pieters, including potential claims for:

– **Abuse of process**
– **Malicious prosecution**
– **DMCA fraud** under U.S. law [17 U.S.C. § 512(f)]

The Network has called on other citizens who believe they have been similarly targeted by politically connected lawyers to come forward.

“The Law Society of Ontario has closed its file, but we are opening ours—in a courtroom where these issues belong,” Jacobs added. “No one, not even the President’s lawyer, is above the law.”

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*GACN is a non-governmental organization dedicated to promoting transparency, accountability, and the rule of law in Guyana.*