Emmanuel, former Chief of VROMI Cabinet arrested for unlawfully leasing gov’t. land  | THE DAILY HERALD

 

PHILIPSBURG–National Alliance (NA) Member of Parliament (MP) and former Minister of Public Housing, Environment, Spatial Development and Infrastructure (VROMI) Christophe Emmanuel and Chief of his Cabinet while Emmanuel served as Minister, were arrested Tuesday on suspicion of abuse of function and forgery or complicity in such acts.

  The second person arrested has the initials M.A.R. The two were arrested on Tuesday as part of an investigation named “Begonia”. The Public Prosecutor’s Office said in a press release that the suspects were arrested by the National Detectives of Sint Maarten.
  The release said that after a lengthy investigation the two were arrested on suspicion of abuse of function and forgery or complicity in such acts, during their tenure at VROMI. “The suspects are accused of unlawfully long leasing government land to acquaintances at the end of their tenure in 2017. As a result, other applicants were disadvantaged,” it was stated in the release.

  A team of law enforcement officials, which included the Prosecutor’s Office and the National Detectives, swooped down on Emmanuel’s home in South Reward early Tuesday as part of the investigations. A Customs vehicle had been parked in front of the MPs residence during the incident.

  In February 2018, this newspaper reported that Emmanuel issued more than 10,000 m2 in long lease to eight persons (names provided to The Daily Herald) of whom three were part of his cabinet, including his chief of staff, late 2017 while still Minister before being ousted by a new coalition in Parliament. The ministerial decrees for all eight people were signed on December 15 of that year.

Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/91885-emmanuel-former-chief-of-vromi-cabinet-arrested-for-unlawfully-leasing-gov-t-land

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