Three Customs officers were arraigned on charges of forgery of official document this afternoon in the #1 Magistrate’s Court of Chief Magistrate Margaret Gabb-McKenzie.
The charges arose as a result of a 40-foot container that is widely suspected to contain illicit drugs. Customs officials say that the three officers in question facilitated its illegal removal by the forging of the requisite official papers on the evening of Tuesday, September 16, 2008, when almost the entire senior staff of the department was at the Corozal Free Zone holding meetings with other security force stakeholders.
The three officers who are facing the indictable offence of forging an official document are Arruny Perez, 32, two counts; Carl Augustine, 36, and Michael McKenzie, 21, one count each. No plea was taken from the accused men, and if they are found guilty, the offence carries a ten-year maximum prison sentence. The men are represented by attorneys Michael Peyrefitte; Ellis Arnold, Senior Counsel; and Carlo Mason.
After Gabb-McKenzie read the charges, the prosecution, represented by Senior Superintendent of Police Robert Mariano, immediately objected to bail. Mariano said that the contents of the container were pharmaceuticals and that documents were forged, so he was objecting to bail.
But Peyrefitte rose to inform the court that, “Nothing in the charge speaks of pharmaceuticals. It’s just a container.”
Mariano responded by saying that the container was missing at that time, adding that the investigation was ongoing, and if bail were granted, it could hinder the investigation.
“According to the investigator, the defendants could tamper with witnesses, and could influence witnesses so as not to give evidence. I also want you to take into consideration the seriousness of the crime,” he said.
Mariano asked the court for time to see if the container could be found. He said that the investigator would like to have more time to conduct the investigation.
“With the defendants out on bail, that could hamper the investigation in a very serious way. Between now and two weeks, the investigator could come close to concluding the investigation,” Mariano submitted.
Peyrefitte rose and declared: “With due respect, I still have not heard any grounds.” He went on to point out that accused persons get bail for manslaughter, which could bring a life sentence, and the biggest sentence for this crime was only ten years.
“Bail is a right, not a privilege. The prosecution must show to this court right now why bail must not be granted. The accused persons are public servants of the Customs Department. Two of them, Perez and Augustine, have 10 and 16 years of service, respectively. Where is the evidence that the investigator would not be able to find the container if the accused are granted bail? The prosecution is as asking the court to deprive three accused men of their liberty. But nothing is coming from the prosecution that the accused persons are a flight risk,” Peyrefitte concluded his submission.
Carlo Mason made a brief submission in opposition to the prosecution’s no-bail submission. Mason told the court that the defendants are well known to their colleagues in the Customs and Immigration Departments, so even if it fleetingly crosses their minds to leave the country, they would be recognized. Mason went on to ask that bail be granted with conditions. “It is a right and if that right is to be abrogated, the prosecution must show reasons,” he said.
Magistrate Gabb-McKenzie began her address to the court saying: “I thought that there would be a thorough investigation. Does the investigator know who the witnesses are?”
The magistrate said that she does not see the relevance of the container being found, and doesn’t see why the investigator needs two weeks to investigate.
She then told the court that she thought the prosecutor would have used flight risk as a ground for objecting to bail.
“This tells me that the prosecution has not really investigated that background of these accused. The prosecution has not given any grounds not to grant bail. I will grant bail. No conditions would be adhered to.”
Gabb-McKenzie granted bail to all three men in the sum of $6,000 plus one surety of the same amount, and the case was adjourned until October 20.