Man indicted for perjury, forging notary public's name on bond papers

Nita Johnson, The Sentinel Echo, London, Ky.
·1 min read

Apr. 23—Perjury is an infrequent charge but a London man is now facing two counts as well as charged with forging a notary public's name on bond papers.

Kareem Shahir Hamdiyah, 45, of Collett Drive in London, was indicted by a Laurel grand jury on Friday charging him with two counts of perjury and four counts of second-degree forgery.

The indictment states that on Jan. 20, 2020, Hamdiyah made false statements during a proceeding while under oath in a felony case in Laurel District Court.

The second perjury charge stems from Hamdiyah making a false statement while under oath on Dec. 10, 2020, in a separate felony case.

The four forgery charges occurred on Jan 20, 2020, Oct. 5, 2020, Dec. 1, 2020, and Feb. 17, 2021, and charges Hamdiyah with "intentionally with the intent to defraud, deceive or injure another" by falsely "completed or altered a Bond Assignment in four Laurel District Court cases by forging the date and name of a notary public.

Hamdiyah's bond is concurrent with the bond in a 2023 case in which he is charged with trafficking Oxycodone and methamphetamine, throwing the illicit drugs in a garbage can, resisting arrest and second-degree fleeing or evading police. The bond in that case was set at $25,000 cash at the time of Hamdiyah's arrest in May 2023.

Hamdiyah is set for a status hearing on the new charges on June 19 in Laurel Circuit Court.

An indictment is an accusation only and does not imply guilt or innocence. Persons are considered innocent until proven guilty under state and federal law.