Better Hope goldsmith Richard Ramjit will today appear in court to answer charges in connection with his gold and silver jewellery which was seized by the Special Organized Crime Unit (SOCU) in January at the airport.
Sometime after SOCU officials visited his home yesterday and conducted a search for evidence of money laundering, Ramjit was informed that he will be charged with exporting gold without a licence and failing to declare jewellery. The two pieces of jewellery – a band and a neckwear together weighing 19.12 ounces – have an estimated value of $3,943,360 and remain in the possession of SOCU.
Former attorney general Anil Nandlall who represents Ramjit said in an invited comment that the institution of charges is nothing more than an abuse of process.
He informed that ranks armed with a search warrant raided his client’s East Coast Demerara home. Nandlall said that as far as he was aware nothing was found and when the search had ended Ramjit was invited to the Camp Street-based SOCU Headquarters were he was informed that he would be charged. Ramjit is scheduled to appear in the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court.
Following the January 19 seizure, Nandlall had filed a $10 million lawsuit against the government on the claim that his client’s fundamental rights and freedoms were breached. Ramjit was preparing to board a plane to the United States when he was held and questioned about the jewellery he was wearing. After being interrogated and transported to SOCU Headquarters where he was further questioned, he was released minus his jewellery.
Nandlall reminded that in his Notice of Motion he had stated that his client was never requested by customs to declare the jewellery and in fact he inquired of a customs officer whether he should declare the jewellery and was told it was not necessary because he was wearing the jewellery.
“Under those circumstances can he be described as an exporter of gold when he travelled on numerous occasions wearing the said jewellery?” the attorney questioned before adding that in order to “justify their illegal seizure of the jewellery they are not stretching the law to absurd lengths.”
Nandlall, who has been very critical of SOCU following several search operations at least one of which targeted known business people, charged that the fate that has now befallen his client “is a complete abuse and misuse of the law and the criminal justice system.”
He vowed that when the charges are dismissed he will file civil proceedings for malicious prosecution.
According to Nandlall, he was informed of the search and the invitation to SOCU Headquarters and he told his client to exercise his right to silence. He said he was also in contact with a SOCU officer.
Asked for a response to the charges, Nandlall told Stabroek News that he was not shocked at the lengths to which SOCU has gone.
He also made mention of the failure of Minister of Public Security Khemraj Ramjattan to make public the protocols as had been promised.
“Up to now the Minister of Public Security is refusing to make public the protocols under which SOCU is operating, though he promised the nation that he will do so over two months ago,” he said.
In February Ramjattan announced to the Parliament that the six pages which make up the protocols for the unit have been drafted and will be made public.
A week later he told Stabroek News that they will be made public as soon as he goes through them with the Attorney General and President. He said he had them in his possession and the meeting with the AG and president was scheduled to be held shortly.
“It is an utter abuse of process for SOCU to institute criminal charges when a constitutional motion has been filed in the High Court challenging the legality of their detention of my client’s property. The magistrate’s court in my view will have to await the outcome of the constitutional challenge before proceeding. If the High Court challenge is successful then out of necessity the criminal charges would have been wrongly filed,” he charged.
Two weeks ago, Nandlall criticized the High Court’s granting of an order to have SOCU keep his client’s gold jewellery pointing out that it was an abuse and misuse of the Anti Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Act particularly since it was granted without affording them a hearing.
The motion among other things asked for the jewellery to be returned. Nandlall had told this newspaper that it was only recently that he was made aware that the police had moved to the court to have the pieces kept for 90 days. That application was granted by the court.
Embarrassing
Ramjit told Stabroek News that the entire ordeal has been embarrassing for him and his family and he questioned why SOCU did not charge him in January.
He insists that the unit has no evidence to substantiate the charges.
“I am concerned because this matter is already in court. I don’t know what’s going on and they are charging me for something they don’t have proof of. I am professing my innocence,” he stressed.
He said that when the SOCU officers arrived at his home around midday he was not there. It was his wife who informed him that they were there and that she was shown a search warrant.
The businessman said when he arrived at his home he saw four men who identified themselves as SOCU officers and several policemen from the Sparendaam Police Station. He said the search began when he arrived home. According to Ramjit, the ranks told him that they were investigating money laundering and were searching for money.
He said they searched a section of his home but found nothing. Ramjit informed that this was the first time that his home was searched by SOCU.
Ramjit, in his affidavit in support of his motion, explained that as he was checking in at the airline counter, a person in civilian clothes who identified himself as a CANU rank indicated that he wanted to search his suitcase and ask certain questions. The document said that Ramjit was escorted to a room, where there was another man in plain clothes who refused to divulge his name.
During questioning about his jewellery, Ramjit said he told the rank that he had made it himself five years ago and since then has worn the items when travelling abroad without incident.
Ramjit said the officer accused him of smuggling gold and he denied. He further alleged that an attempt was made by the officer to “settle the matter” in exchange for not seizing the jewellery. He said he refused the offer and was then permitted to leave but while heading to the Departure Lounge he was stopped by a Customs Officer, who asked to see his jewellery.
He was then allowed to proceed but moments later the same officer requested that he follow him to his office, where he was again accused of smuggling gold.
He was then escorted to the tarmac, where his suitcase was searched by a sniffer dog but nothing was found. Ramjit said he was then escorted to the Customs Office, where he was further questioned and informed that it was unlawful to have jewellery which exceeds the value of US$10,000 without making a declaration.
The jewellery was then seized and he was instructed to visit the SOCU office the following day. By then he had spent four hours with the customs officer and his flight had already left.
