Foreign-used car scam

ALVA VIARRUEL stood still in the dock while Magistrate Krishendeo Narinesingh read out four fraud charges against him. He barely moved and uttered no words during the proceedings in the Port-of-Spain Fourth Magistrates’ Court yesterday afternoon.

Viarruel, 41, former crime reporter with the Express and Guardian newspapers, was one of two men before the court charged with fraudulent conversion. While Viarruel was allowed to go home on $100,000 bail, the other man Kamead Baksh, 35, with three addresses, was not so lucky. He was sent to jail after the court heard that he skipped his court date in February on one of ten similar charges dating back to 2000.

Both Viarruel and Baksh are foreign-used car dealers. Viarruel, who lives in St Joseph was the first to appear. He was accompanied to court by his lawyers’ Fulton Wilson — a former reporter with the Express and Guardian — and Frank Peterson. The magistrate then read the charges.

(1) During the period January 20 and April 19 this year, at St Joseph, Viarruel fraudulently converted to his own use and benefit $14,000 cash from Soomatee Rampersad as a down payment for a roll-on roll-off Toyota vehicle valued at $77,000.

(2) During the period May 18, 2005 and April 19, 2006, at Port-of-Spain, he fraudulently converted to his own use and benefit $34,150 from Rosemary Lindsay-Donavan as a down payment for a Nissan Sunny vehicle valued at $67,000 from Singapore.

(3) During the period October 3, 2005 and April 19, 2006, at Barataria, fraudulently converted to his own use and benefit $41,800 from Larrisha Nunes Charles as a down payment for a 2001 Toyota Corolla DX Station Wagon.

(4) During the period January 13, 2005 and April 19, 2006, at St James, fraudulently converted to his own use and benefit $41,000 from Grace Schmitt as a down payment to purchase a 2001 Hyundai Matrix Sedan valued $61,900 from Singapore.

All the charges were laid indictably, so Viarruel was not called upon to plead. The charges were laid by Constables Nisha Sookram, Lennox Benn, Ramdhani Dipchand, and Sophia Narine of the Fraud Squad. Wilson said bail was set by a Justice of the Peace on Wednesday night in the sum of $100,000 and he asked for a date for the adjournment. Narinesingh asked the prosecutor if any tracing was done on Viarruel. He was told there was nothing against the former journalist.

One of Viarruel’s cases was transferred to the Tunapuna Magistrates’ Court on April 28, while the other three remained in Port-of-Spain for July 3. Minutes later, Baksh was in the dock. He was picked up at a house in Palmiste, San Fernando, on Wednesday on a warrant for failing to attend court in February. But Baksh told the court he does not live in Palmiste, his fiancee lives there. He said he lives at Southern Main Road, California, but sleeps occasionally at Savannah Villas, Aranjuez.

Narinesingh told Baksh that there were at least ten cases of fraudulent conversion against him dating back to 2000. Two more awaited Baksh yesterday.

(1) During the period October 25, 2005 and April 19, 2006 at Chase Village, fraudulently converted to his own use $70,000 being the down payment from Nizamudeen Ali for a Toyota Hilux from Japan valued at $234,000.

(2) During the period November 10, 2004 and April 14, 2005, at Chase Village, fraudulently converted to his own use $80,000 from Tara Wong as a down payment for a vehicle from Japan valued at $220,000.

The cases were transferred to the Chaguanas Magistrates’ Court on April 26.