Several retired officers of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) including the Chair-man of the Police Service Commission (PSC), Paul Slowe are expected to be charged today in relation to a multi-million dollar fraud investigation.
The accused are retired Assistant Commissioners of Police Slowe, Clinton Conway and Ivelaw Whittaker along with former Senior Superintendents, Mark Gilbert, George Fraser and Michael Sutton.
All of them except for Slowe are presently in police custody. Slowe is currently overseas and is expected to return to Guyana today.
The former ranks are accused of defrauding the state of more than $10M.
Stabroek News was reliably informed that the retired ranks claimed that they were forming a committee to revise the Stand-ing Orders of the GPF.
Given the amount entailed, the project was supposed to go to tender but instead the men allegedly collected the money in portions to avoid going to tender.
The alleged fraud was unearthed during an investigation conducted by the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU).
The former cops are scheduled to appear at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court today to answer to the charge.
Contacted, yesterday afternoon, Slowe told Stabroek News that the allegations leveled against him are false and malicious and are designed to tarnish his “unblemished” reputation.
He declined to comment any further.
Meanwhile, in an invited comment last evening, Conway expressed shock at the allegations.
Conway said that sometime in 2019, then then Commissioner of Police Leslie James invited him and a number of other retired officers to a meeting at the GPF Headquarters.
“……And he (James) said he wants us to review the police standing orders – 106 but they are mostly outdated….We agreed. Nothing about money….we on our own thought that it was a good idea for us to do some work for the police,” Conway said.
He said he and the other former ranks commenced the work at the police Strategic Management Office. “….We did a total of 68 (standing orders),” he added.
During the process, Conway explained that an Assistant Commissioner of Police, who was at the time in charge of the unit, told them that James and his management team made a decision that those conducting the revision should be paid a “stipend”.
“….We continued the work….$3,000 per an hour. They at the Strategic Management Unit monitored our activities….We worked and then when the date for National and Regional elections was announced, the management team said that we cannot use the office anymore because they were preparing it for elections,” Conway related.
He added that after elections, the country experienced a COVID-19 outbreak.
“We were not recalled to do any other work. All the work that we did we saved and we put them on the computers that is at the Strategic Management Unit. We had no deadline when to complete all the Standing Orders. We did not negotiate for any payment,” Conway stated.
He said yesterday morning, he was arrested by SOCU.
“He (rank) said for fraud. Tell me specifically what you are arresting me for. A man must be told in simple language, in a language what he understands what you are investigating. He said fraud, he took me to SOCU headquarters and then to Brickdam Police Station,” Conway said.
Up to last night, Conway said his lawyers were trying to secure bail for him.
The police force in a statement last night gave its own version as it relates to the standing orders revision.
The statement said “It is alleged that Mr. Slowe, five former retired senior officers, one current Assistant Commissioner, one former female Finance Officer and a male officer attached to the Police Finance Office conspired together with each other and other persons to defraud the Guyana Police Force of in excess of ten million Guyana dollars.
“The money was allegedly paid to revise the entire Guyana Police Force’s Standing Orders but Mr. Slowe and the others have so far failed to present to the Guyana Police Force … a completed revised Standing (Orders). The Guyana Police Force has a Standing Order which comprises of 104 Standing Orders. The entire 104 Standing Orders of the Guyana Police Force was completely revised by Civilian Police Analysts that work at the Strategic Planning Unit of the Guyana Police Force between July 2018 and March 2019. However, Slowe and others were paid to do the same revision when it was already done.
“About eight of these officers, including Mr. Slowe, conspired together and gave themselves a job that clearly should have gone to the Tender Board by law because of the quantity. In addition, Mr. Slowe and Retired Assistant Commissioner Clinton Conway– being members of the Police Service Commission, which overlooks the Police Force as the disciplinary body – cannot take contracts and enter into agreements that they are getting substantial monetary rewards for. They reportedly (drew) this money knowing that this work was completed”.
The main opposition APNU+AFC yesterday condemned the arrests of the former senior policemen.
In a statement, it said: “These are frightening and chilling developments which signal, beyond debate, that Guyana has sunken into a state of naked dictatorship.
“The charges are spurious, vexatious and without merit or basis. They are trumped up and designed to intimidate these former senior police officers who have been executing their work as Chairman and members of the PSC (Police Service Commission) with the highest degree of professionalism and integrity.
“The PPP is clearly now attempting to tarnish their impeccable reputations and dismantle the professionally constituted PSC to install their cronies, who will in turn, do their bidding and promote pliant and favoured officers to the hierarchy of the Police Force.
“The PPP is hell bent on completely eroding all vestiges of professionalism within the Guyana Police Force and completely render it into a political weapon to target and persecute political opponents and the citizens of Guyana who oppose their authoritarianism”.
