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Kern Spencer Arrested-Gleaner Story
Kern Spencer Charged - Observer Story
After almost a week of interrogation, the Organised Crime Investigation Division (OCID) last evening arrested and charged former junior energy minister Kern Spencer, his former executive assistant and supervisor at the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (PCJ), Coleen Wright, and businessman Rodney Chin with fraud, corruption and money laundering in relation to the Cuban light bulb scandal.
The charges were laid after a team of sleuths led by OCID head, acting Senior Superintendent Fitz Bailey, finished their grilling of the trio yesterday.
Spencer, Wright and Chin were interrogated separately.
The three accused will remain in police custody until they are taken before the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate's Court tomorrow morning.
Police refused to say where the three were being held last night.
Coleen Wright, former executive assistant to Kern Spencer and supervisor at the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica, weeps inside a car yesterday after leaving the Organised Crime Investigation Division office where she was charged in connection with the Cuban light bulb scandal. (Photo: Garfield Robinson)
Yesterday, after reporters camped for hours outside the OCID office, head of the Major Investigation Task Force, Assistant Commissioner Les Green, gave reporters the details of the charges during an impromptu press conference on the sidewalk outside the OCID office at Orange Street in downtown Kingston.
Spencer is charged with:
. Three counts of conspiracy to defraud;
. One count of corruption under Section 14(1) of the Prevention of Corruption Act; and
. Three counts of Money Laundering;
Chin, managing director of Universal Management Company (UMD) and Caribbean Communications and Media Network Ltd, is charged with:
. Two counts of conspiracy to defraud;
. One count of corruption under Section 14(2) of the Prevention of Corrupton Act; and
. One count of Money Laundering.
Wright is charged with:
. Two counts of conspiracy to defraud;
. One count of corruption under Section 14(1) of the Prevention of Corruption Act; and
. Four counts of Money Laundering.
Allegations of impropriety surfaced last November when the current energy minister, Clive Mullings, told Parliament that $114 million was improperly spent on the distribution of four million energy-saving light bulbs donated by the Cuban Government to the people of Jamaica.
Mullings announced that he had asked the contractor-general and the auditor-general to investigate the M4 Project for which Spencer had responsibility and under which Cuban volunteers were used to distribute the bulbs.
Of the $114-million, Mullings said $85 million was paid out to UMD for "various services purported to be connected with the implementation of the project".
According to the minister, the entity was not registered as a contractor or supplier with the National Contracts Commission, and was only incorporated around the time the islandwide distribution of the bulbs started in 2006.
In January, the auditor-general reported that about 176,380 of the four million bulbs, costing approximately $92 million, could not be accounted for, while there was an absence of an effective system of budgetary control resulting in the making of payments and the incurring of unpaid obligations of $185.3 million over the approved financial support of the PCJ.
In February, Contractor-General Greg Christie, in his report on the project, said there was "a very strong inference of an unlawful criminal conspiracy and corruption" in the award of contracts under the project.
Christie also accused Spencer of "improper, unauthorised and unlawful intervention in the project's procurement, contract award and contract payment processes".
Christie said that property, allegedly owned by Spencer, and/or his company, Butterfly Traders Limited, was utilised in the execution of contracts.
He said that his investigations unearthed allegations which could, at a minimum, suggest that Spencer, by himself and/or through his company, "was an active participant in the execution of contracts under the 4M Project, at a time when he was the public officer for the implementation of the project".
Christie also implicated Sherine Shakes, the mother of Spencer's child, who was listed as business development manager/project manager for UMD, which received the bulk of the payments from the PCJ in relation to the project; and her mother, Verdie Mair, who was listed as one of the contractors engaged on the 4M Project by Spencer.
Mair reportedly received direct payments of $700,000 from the PCJ for catering services under the project. She was also, separately, listed as the first company secretary for UMD and Caribbean Communications and Media Network (CCMN), which also received a number of contracts under the project.
It was not clear yesterday if charges would be laid against Shakes and Mair.
Spencer has consistently maintained his innocence and claimed that there were gaping holes in Christie's report. Two weeks ago, he applied for leave from the Parliament, where he represents the North East St Elizabeth constituency. He also took leave from all his leadership roles in the Opposition People's National Party (PNP), saying that he was "concerned about the damage that is being unfairly done" to the party.
Yesterday, Spencer's attorney, Debra Martin, was surprised that news of her client being charged was in the public domain before she or her client was notified by the police. Spencer was reportedly handed over to the police by his legal team when news of the charges broke.
"We heard and we initiated contact with the police and we came in," Martin told the Observer after she emerged from inside the OCID building.
Another member of Spencer's legal team, Patrick Atkinson, was also upset about the glare under which his client had been cast.
"I don't like how this case is being handled. There are some people who want to try it before it comes before a court. This is a witchhunt," Atkinson said as reporters crowded him.
Minutes after 6:00 pm yesterday, Wright was escorted out of the OCID offices by two officers, one of whom had minutes before ordered members of the media out of the building.
Wright covered her face with a black shawl and cowered from the glare of cameras before being shunted into a police jeep by a female cop.
After taking a seat in the vehicle, Wright removed the shawl and burst into tears.
Spencer and Chin did not brave the glare of the media cameras and were whisked away through a back entrance while Green laid out the charges to the media.
The horde of journalists attracted dozens of curious onlookers who stood outside the building waiting for Spencer, who was once the parliamentary secretary with responsibility for the correctional services, and Chin to emerge.
"We want back every cent, this thing is going on too long," a female bystander remarked.
Another woman expressed sympathy for the embattled politician.
"I am sorry for him as it seems he has no support and has been hung out to dry," the woman said.
In 1989 when the PNP was returned to office, J A G Smith, who served in the Jamaica Labour Party Government of the 1980s as labour minister, was charged with fraud in relation to money from the farm work programme. He was tried, found guilty and sentenced to five years in prison in 1990.
THE CHARGES
Kern Spencer:
. Three counts of conspiracy to defraud, between July 2006 and September 2007.
. One count of corruption under Section 14(1) of the Prevention of Corruption Act - On July 30, 2007 he received J$3.1 million from Rodney Chin.
. Three counts of Money Laundering - Concealing and disguising criminal property (US$37,836.65) on the September 14, 2007; Transferring criminal property from Jamaica (US64,576.50) on July 30, 2007; Engaging in a transaction with criminal property (J$3 million) on July 30, 2007.
Rodney Chin:
. Two counts of conspiracy to defraud, between July 2006 and September 2007.
. One count of corruption under Section 14(2) of the Prevention of Corrupton Act - On the July 30, 2007 he gave J$3.1 million to Kern Spencer.
. One count of Money Laundering - Engaging in a transaction with criminal property (J$3.1 millions) on July 30, 2007.
Coleen Wright:
. Two counts of conspiracy to defraud - between July 2006 and September 2007.
. One count of corruption under Section 14(1) of the Prevention of Corruption Act - On September 14, 2007 she allegedly received J$500,000 from Rodney Chin.
. Four counts of Money Laundering - engaging in a transaction with criminal property (J$4 million) August 7, 2007; Transferring criminal property (J$1,200,000) on August 7, 2007; Disposing of criminal property (J$1,800,000) on August 7, 2007; Concealing and disguising criminal property (US$37,836.65) on the September 14, 2007.
Kern Spencer Arrested-Gleaner Story
Kern Spencer Charged - Observer Story
After almost a week of interrogation, the Organised Crime Investigation Division (OCID) last evening arrested and charged former junior energy minister Kern Spencer, his former executive assistant and supervisor at the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (PCJ), Coleen Wright, and businessman Rodney Chin with fraud, corruption and money laundering in relation to the Cuban light bulb scandal.
The charges were laid after a team of sleuths led by OCID head, acting Senior Superintendent Fitz Bailey, finished their grilling of the trio yesterday.
Spencer, Wright and Chin were interrogated separately.
The three accused will remain in police custody until they are taken before the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate's Court tomorrow morning.
Police refused to say where the three were being held last night.
Coleen Wright, former executive assistant to Kern Spencer and supervisor at the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica, weeps inside a car yesterday after leaving the Organised Crime Investigation Division office where she was charged in connection with the Cuban light bulb scandal. (Photo: Garfield Robinson)
Yesterday, after reporters camped for hours outside the OCID office, head of the Major Investigation Task Force, Assistant Commissioner Les Green, gave reporters the details of the charges during an impromptu press conference on the sidewalk outside the OCID office at Orange Street in downtown Kingston.
Spencer is charged with:
. Three counts of conspiracy to defraud;
. One count of corruption under Section 14(1) of the Prevention of Corruption Act; and
. Three counts of Money Laundering;
Chin, managing director of Universal Management Company (UMD) and Caribbean Communications and Media Network Ltd, is charged with:
. Two counts of conspiracy to defraud;
. One count of corruption under Section 14(2) of the Prevention of Corrupton Act; and
. One count of Money Laundering.
Wright is charged with:
. Two counts of conspiracy to defraud;
. One count of corruption under Section 14(1) of the Prevention of Corruption Act; and
. Four counts of Money Laundering.
Allegations of impropriety surfaced last November when the current energy minister, Clive Mullings, told Parliament that $114 million was improperly spent on the distribution of four million energy-saving light bulbs donated by the Cuban Government to the people of Jamaica.
Mullings announced that he had asked the contractor-general and the auditor-general to investigate the M4 Project for which Spencer had responsibility and under which Cuban volunteers were used to distribute the bulbs.
Of the $114-million, Mullings said $85 million was paid out to UMD for "various services purported to be connected with the implementation of the project".
According to the minister, the entity was not registered as a contractor or supplier with the National Contracts Commission, and was only incorporated around the time the islandwide distribution of the bulbs started in 2006.
In January, the auditor-general reported that about 176,380 of the four million bulbs, costing approximately $92 million, could not be accounted for, while there was an absence of an effective system of budgetary control resulting in the making of payments and the incurring of unpaid obligations of $185.3 million over the approved financial support of the PCJ.
In February, Contractor-General Greg Christie, in his report on the project, said there was "a very strong inference of an unlawful criminal conspiracy and corruption" in the award of contracts under the project.
Christie also accused Spencer of "improper, unauthorised and unlawful intervention in the project's procurement, contract award and contract payment processes".
Christie said that property, allegedly owned by Spencer, and/or his company, Butterfly Traders Limited, was utilised in the execution of contracts.
He said that his investigations unearthed allegations which could, at a minimum, suggest that Spencer, by himself and/or through his company, "was an active participant in the execution of contracts under the 4M Project, at a time when he was the public officer for the implementation of the project".
Christie also implicated Sherine Shakes, the mother of Spencer's child, who was listed as business development manager/project manager for UMD, which received the bulk of the payments from the PCJ in relation to the project; and her mother, Verdie Mair, who was listed as one of the contractors engaged on the 4M Project by Spencer.
Mair reportedly received direct payments of $700,000 from the PCJ for catering services under the project. She was also, separately, listed as the first company secretary for UMD and Caribbean Communications and Media Network (CCMN), which also received a number of contracts under the project.
It was not clear yesterday if charges would be laid against Shakes and Mair.
Spencer has consistently maintained his innocence and claimed that there were gaping holes in Christie's report. Two weeks ago, he applied for leave from the Parliament, where he represents the North East St Elizabeth constituency. He also took leave from all his leadership roles in the Opposition People's National Party (PNP), saying that he was "concerned about the damage that is being unfairly done" to the party.
Yesterday, Spencer's attorney, Debra Martin, was surprised that news of her client being charged was in the public domain before she or her client was notified by the police. Spencer was reportedly handed over to the police by his legal team when news of the charges broke.
"We heard and we initiated contact with the police and we came in," Martin told the Observer after she emerged from inside the OCID building.
Another member of Spencer's legal team, Patrick Atkinson, was also upset about the glare under which his client had been cast.
"I don't like how this case is being handled. There are some people who want to try it before it comes before a court. This is a witchhunt," Atkinson said as reporters crowded him.
Minutes after 6:00 pm yesterday, Wright was escorted out of the OCID offices by two officers, one of whom had minutes before ordered members of the media out of the building.
Wright covered her face with a black shawl and cowered from the glare of cameras before being shunted into a police jeep by a female cop.
After taking a seat in the vehicle, Wright removed the shawl and burst into tears.
Spencer and Chin did not brave the glare of the media cameras and were whisked away through a back entrance while Green laid out the charges to the media.
The horde of journalists attracted dozens of curious onlookers who stood outside the building waiting for Spencer, who was once the parliamentary secretary with responsibility for the correctional services, and Chin to emerge.
"We want back every cent, this thing is going on too long," a female bystander remarked.
Another woman expressed sympathy for the embattled politician.
"I am sorry for him as it seems he has no support and has been hung out to dry," the woman said.
In 1989 when the PNP was returned to office, J A G Smith, who served in the Jamaica Labour Party Government of the 1980s as labour minister, was charged with fraud in relation to money from the farm work programme. He was tried, found guilty and sentenced to five years in prison in 1990.
THE CHARGES
Kern Spencer:
. Three counts of conspiracy to defraud, between July 2006 and September 2007.
. One count of corruption under Section 14(1) of the Prevention of Corruption Act - On July 30, 2007 he received J$3.1 million from Rodney Chin.
. Three counts of Money Laundering - Concealing and disguising criminal property (US$37,836.65) on the September 14, 2007; Transferring criminal property from Jamaica (US64,576.50) on July 30, 2007; Engaging in a transaction with criminal property (J$3 million) on July 30, 2007.
Rodney Chin:
. Two counts of conspiracy to defraud, between July 2006 and September 2007.
. One count of corruption under Section 14(2) of the Prevention of Corrupton Act - On the July 30, 2007 he gave J$3.1 million to Kern Spencer.
. One count of Money Laundering - Engaging in a transaction with criminal property (J$3.1 millions) on July 30, 2007.
Coleen Wright:
. Two counts of conspiracy to defraud - between July 2006 and September 2007.
. One count of corruption under Section 14(1) of the Prevention of Corruption Act - On September 14, 2007 she allegedly received J$500,000 from Rodney Chin.
. Four counts of Money Laundering - engaging in a transaction with criminal property (J$4 million) August 7, 2007; Transferring criminal property (J$1,200,000) on August 7, 2007; Disposing of criminal property (J$1,800,000) on August 7, 2007; Concealing and disguising criminal property (US$37,836.65) on the September 14, 2007.
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