The New Building Society (NBS) $69M fraud case yesterday took a dramatic turn as four more persons appeared in court in the matter and charges were reinstituted against three former senior managers so that they will appear together with the quartet.
The four who appeared in court yesterday were being held since last weekend by police who then moved to the courts for more time to keep them in custody while they continued investigations.
Ashley Legall, 59, Imran Bacchus, Amarita Prashad, 18, and Mohanram Shahebudin were present for yesterday’s hearing charged with several counts of conspiracy to defraud. The three fired managers – Maurice Arjoon, Kissoon Baldeo and Kent Vincent were however not present and the court was later told that the men were not aware that they were re-charged and had to make an appearance. Lawyers for two of the men had earlier approached the High Court seeking to prohibit the lower court from having the charges re-read. However, the order they succeeded in obtaining was reportedly handed down after the trio had been charged.
After being told that they could not plead to the indictable charges, Magistrate Gordon Gilhuys remanded the quartet to prison.
The first charge alleges that on November 20, 2006 Legall, Bacchus and Shahebudin conspired with others to withdraw $20.5M from the Savings and Prosper account in the name of Bibi Khan at NBS by way of two cheques.
On November 1, 2006 the second charge read that Legall, Bacchus, Prashad and Shahebudin allegedly conspired with others to withdraw $15M from Khan’s account in the form of two cheques in the name of M. Kryshundayal and Compton Chase respectively.
The third charge stated that Bacchus, Legall, Shahebudin, Baldeo and Vincent on November 17 allegedly conspired to withdraw $22,664,000 from Khan’s account by using two cheques, one in the name of M. Hussein and the other, Compton Chase.
And the fourth charge said that on November 8, Arjune, Vincent, Bacchus, Legall and Shahebudin conspired with others to withdraw $32,230,384 from Khan’s account using two cheques.
After the charges were read, the lawyers representing the quartet argued strenuously for bail, highlighting the fact that the three managers who were charged for this very offence were released on bail on their very first court appearance.
Attorney-at-law Vic Puran entered an appearance for Bacchus and in a bail application he told the court that the defendants are all charged for offences which were already before the court. “Unfortunately it was this same court they passed through and they were all granted bail”, he argued
Puran stressed that all persons are equal before the law, adding that what applied for the other three should also apply for his client.
He said that his client had never spent a night in the lock-ups and so is not a flight risk. According to Puran, police apprehended his client at his home and pointed out that he was previously in custody for the same matter for which he is being charged.
“Knowing that the police was interested in him, he made no attempts to flee”, Puran said.
He added that there is no issue of his client, who is a University of Guyana student, tampering with witnesses and he will be happy to surrender his passport.
Voluntarily
Meanwhile attorney-at-law Abiola Wong-Innis who represented Legall told the court that her client after being told by some persons that there was an investigation voluntarily went into the police station, not knowing about the allegations against him. She said that he is a businessman and trader in Trinidad and Tobago.
“Shortly after he returned from Trinidad and Tobago he went to the station”, she added.
She too argued that her client was no flight risk and has strong family ties to the jurisdiction. She added that “based on the circumstances outlined he ought to be placed on reasonable bail”.
The defence counsel further submitted that her client had his passport with him and it would be lodged as a requirement for bail.
Defence counsel Paul Braam in representing Prashad said that his client lives with her parents and is currently pursuing the ACCA Level Two examination having already excelled with 11 subjects at the CSEC.
“She is here for performing duties at NBS as a clerk”, he added.
He, too, raised the argument about the treatment meted out to the three former senior managers who he said were whisked away, never spending a night in jail.
“I would like to endorse sentiments by other colleagues in relation to the other three who were charged