(Trinidad Express) Vinworth Dayal, who walked into the Central Bank in December 2019 and tried to exchange more than $28 million in $100 cotton bills for polymer notes, has been committed to stand trial for money laundering.
On Wednesday Chief Magistrate Maria Busby Earle-Caddle found that the State had presented sufficient evidence to have Dayal, head of the Third Exodus Assembly Church in Longdenville, face trial at the High Court.
Dayal, who lives in La Romaine, was granted bail of $10 million after the committal warrant was read to him.
He was accused of being in possession of criminal property in the amount of $28,028,600 on December 31, 2019.
The State contended that the money represented a pecuniary advantage to Dayal as a result of criminal conduct contrary to the Income Tax Act, knowing or having reasonable grounds to suspect that those proceeds were criminal property.
A second charge was laid against Dayal after police officers allegedly found an additional $2,691,338, at his home on January 2, 2020.
Dayal was represented by senior counsel Pamela Elder and Richard Mason, while the State was represented by Wayne Rajbansie and Candace Jacob.
In all, 26 witnesses testified at the preliminary enquiry either in person or with their statements tendered into evidence.
Following the completion of the State’s evidence, Elder made a no-case submission, arguing that the State had failed to have a prima facie case made out.
The magistrate, however, dismissed the submission.
Both charges were laid under Section 45(1)(b) of the Proceeds of Crime Act and were laid 18 months after Dayal tried to exchange the money, which has since been held in an interest-bearing account.
December 31, 2019, was the last day on which the Central Bank said it would accept cotton $100 bills to exchange for new polymer bills.
On the deadline date, Dayal went to the Central Bank with 28 cardboard boxes, each containing approximately $1 million.
Police were called in after he could not provide proper documentation for how he obtained the money.
He said it came from tithes which he had collected over the years.