Prominent member of the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR) and attorney James Bond was on Friday released from police custody after being arrested in connection with the ongoing probe of the award of state lands at Peters Hall, on the East Bank of Demerara (EBD).
One of Bond’s attorneys, Patrice Henry, told Stabroek News that his client was released on $200,000 station bail and is required report to the Criminal Investigation Department Headquarters, at Eve Leary, on Monday morning.
Henry said there has been no indication of charges but noted that the investigation is still ongoing.
Bond was taken into police custody for 72 hours after being detained on Tuesday last.
Bond is alleged to have been a key financial beneficiary of the deals which allegedly did not comply with the traditional terms of such land leases. Bond has declined to speak to Stabroek News on these matters.
After being released, Bond was greeted by Chairman of the PNCR Volda Lawrence.
Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum previously told Stabroek News that Bond was being questioned in relation to conspiracy to defraud the state. Efforts to contact Blanhum yesterday for an update on investigation proved futile as calls went unanswered.
The Guyana Police Force and its Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) in the previous week received three files from Attorney General Anil Nandlall for the investigation of leases for several acres of prime state lands at Peters Hall, East Bank Demerara, which were done without any valuation, public advertisement or Cabinet decisions.
Bond allegedly arranged several of the land deals and benefitted from the sale of the lease rights. At the time he was also supposedly looking after the interest of NICIL, which was presiding over the leasing of the lands.
A number of other persons, including businessman Eddie Doolal and former acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) Colvin Heath-London, have been questioned as part of the investigation.
Businessman Avalon Jagnandan was also detained. He has given a statement to the police and according to reliable sources he has identified Bond as being the recipient of monies for the transfer of his lease rights to another company.
In Jagnandan’s case, the government alleges that the lease for lands held by his company, Life 1 Pharms, were transferred to Chinese national Jian Fen Yu for $100. The plots, `A17’, ‘A18’ and ‘A19,’ total 15 acres. These were assigned to Jian at the same time as businessman Eddie Doolal’s 15 acres of land on the same terms. Their $100 transfer sales were also conducted on the same day. Bond was also connected to Doolal’s deal.
Sources say that Doolal, whose office is close to Bond’s, had been told that he could acquire the lease to the land and then flip it to make money. The agreement to flip it was reportedly drawn up by Bond and Doolal duly sold the rights to the land to the Chinese national for $100. However that agreement masked a behind-the-scenes payment of $133 million.
According to the source, fifty percent of the monies was paid at the law offices of an attorney and Bond collected. The other half was later paid and Doolal then sought to collect his cut. Doolal told the police, the source said, that he felt that the $133 million price tag was “too much” and had initially objected to the sum. He said that he had wanted capital to develop the land, build a bond and start a business, according to the source.
Both the Doolal and Jagnandan leases were lacking a standard provision barring sale of same.
