FRAUD SQUAD PROBES EX-MINISTER

A FORMER minister under the United National Congress (UNC) administration is now the subject of a police investigation for allegedly failing to declare his assets amounting to close to $1 million, reliable sources told Newsday yesterday. The file on the former minister was handed to Sr Supt Wellington Virgil, head of the Fraud Squad earlier this week by Assistant Commissioner of Police (Criminal Intelligence and Investigations) James Philbert, sources said. Sources told Newsday that the bulky file was sent to the police after it was reviewed by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Geoffrey Henderson to determine if any charges should be preferred. “I have no comment to make on that,” was Henderson’s only comment when Newsday contacted him on the subject.

However, sources said the Attorney General’s office first investigated the matter, after which the file was handed over to the Integrity Commission then to the DPP. It is alleged that the former UNC minister had US$130,000 (TT$800,000) transferred to his account in an offshore bank in Jersey, one of the Channel Islands off England. Attorney General Glenda Morean spoke about the alleged fraud in the House of Representatives on June 16, saying that two cheques of US$50,000 each was transferred to a certain minister’s account in the name of himself and his wife in a foreign bank in Jersey. Not calling the ex-minister’s name, Morean added that two other cheques for US$20,000 and $10,000 respectively were transferred into the minister’s account. “These cheques are in possession of the Government,” the AG had said then, adding that it is a question of a Government ensuring that corruption is rooted out of this country. Sources told Newsday that the probe involving the former UNC minister will be handled similarly to a recent one that resulted in charges being laid against another former UNC minister.  Investig-ations are continuing.