Retired, serving Policemen charged over $10M fraud in Police Force

CHARGED: Assistant Commissioner  Whitker (Top Left) Senior Superintendent Stanton (Second from Top) Superintendent Gilbert (Third from Top)  Senior Superintendent Fraser (Bottom right) Assistant Commissioner Conway (Top Right)…. ALL RETIRED POLICEMEN

Several retired and serving ranks of the Guyana Police Force were on Thursday charged with fraud. They were hauled before Principal Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.

Those charged are Police Service Commission Chairman and Retired Assistant Commissioner of Police, Paul Slowe; Retired Assistant Police Commissioners Clinton Conway and Claude Whitaker, along with Former Senior Superintendents George Fraser, Michael Sutton, and Mark Gilbert.

Also charged are Royston Andries- Junor, Marcelene Washington, Michael Sutton, and Marlon Kellman.

The first charge stated that Michael Sutton, being and performing duties as Finance Officer for the Guyana Police Force between July 1, 2019, and July 31, 2019, at the Guyana Police Force Headquarters, Even Leary, Georgetown, wilfully misconducted himself while performing the said duties, that is to say, he falsely signed seven payment vouchers as the accounting officer, which he was not authorized to do, enabling Paul Slowe, Clinton Conway, Claude Whittaker, George Fraser, and Mark Gilbert to be paid $1, 000, 766, without the approval of Daniella McCalmon, the Accounting Officer and without any reasonable excuse or justification.

It is further alleged that Paul Slowe, Clinton Conway, Claude Whittaker, George Fraser, and Mark Gilbert, Royston Andries- Junor, Marcelene Washington, Michael Sutton, and Marlon Kellman between March 1, 2019, and July 7, 2020, at Guyana Police Force Headquarters, Even Leary, Georgetown, conspired together and with other persons unknown to defraud the Guyana Police Force of $10, 056, 000 by paying Paul Slowe, Clinton Conway, Claude Whittaker, George Fraser, and Mark Gilbert the said $10M, without complying with the proper procedures, purportedly to do a review of the Guyana Police Force standing order which had already commence in July 2018 and concluded in the said March 2019 by Strategic Planning Unit of the said Guyana Police Force.

They were not required to plead to the indictable charges after they were read to them. The defendants were represented by a battery of lawyers comprising Nigel Hughes, Patrice Henry, Narrisa Leander, and others.  Sutton who has two charges was granted $200,000 bail meanwhile the other were each granted $100,000 bail. They were all instructed to make their next court appearance on June 3, 2021.

Slowe and Washington were absent from this morning’s proceeding. According to reports, the officers allegedly conspired with each other and persons unknown 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 Order but Slowe and the others have so far failed to present to the Guyana Police Force with a completed revised Standing Order.

The Guyana Police Force has a Standing Order which comprises 104 Standing Orders. The entire 104 Standing Orders of the Guyana Police Force were 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.

The officers conspired together and gave themselves a job that clearly should have gone to the Tender Board by law because of the quantity. In addition, Slowe and Conway– being members of the Police Service Commission, which overlooks the Police Force as the disciplinary body – cannot make contracts and enter into agreements that they are getting substantial monetary rewards for.

They reportedly “drew this money knowing that this work was completed”. It is further alleged that during March and April 2019, a female Assistant Superintendent of Police, who worked along with Slowe, was allegedly sexually assaulted by him three times.

These alleged sexual assaults were reported to an Assistant Commissioner who failed to take proper action. He allegedly told the female Assistant Superintendent ‘…is I have to promote you.’ These investigations are still continuing.

Since the commencement of these investigations, Slowe is out of the jurisdiction.