A 30 year old first class court clerk is free from a theft charge tonight. He is Sean Lord and he was accused of stealing $2,010 dollars from his workplace, the San Ignacio Magistrate's Court. The money Lord allegedly stole was said to have been paid to the court by two immigrants convicted of illegal entry. They were ordered to pay their fines immediately. Lord was tried in Belmopan. But Senior Magistrate Merlene Moody upheld a submission from his attorney Richard "Dickie" Bradley who convinced her that the prosecution failed to prove the case.
Richard "Dickie" Bradley, Attorney for Sean Lord
"There are two Government receipt books for which cashiers collect money. One day at the end of that day, that receipt book and all the monies collected are paid into the treasury department, which is done all over the country. When the treasury is using that book, the public is not unconvinced because the cashier would continue to collect on another receipt book. So there are two receipt books. On the 14th of which ever month on which the matter took place, he went to San Ignacio and held over as cashier. He according to the evidence that emerged from the witnesses that came to court. On the 14th, that was not the receipt book that was in use, first of all he didn't use that receipt book. The second thing that emerged in the trail is that the book from which two receipts were said to have been issued to two persons. The government print receipt books and they are made in triplicates, the original copy goes to the member of the public who is paying the government, the second copy is torn out and paid into the treasury with each receipt and money collected and the third remains in the book. There is no evidence from the book that any third copy was torn out, in other words the book is clean, so either whoever tore it out did it in such a professional way that there is no trace that those two receipts were printed or it could have been a printing error; the book was printed and those two receipts are missing."
"There was no proof that any person appeared in the magistrate court on that day and we're found the same day and we're ordered to pay immediately or go to jail, there was no evidence of that. There was no evidence that Sean Lord made out any receipt or signed any receipt, nobody could bring a receipt to the court or a copy or any document to say look those two receipts were used and it is he is who made those receipts and there were several other legal factors involved. One which is in fact an indictment of the system at this late stage, is that the receipt books although there is a safe in San Ignacio office, the receipt books are not kept in the safe, they are not kept under lock and key, they are just thrown in a drawer. That is evidence that comes out in the court and a host of other factors because when you charge somebody with a crime, you must prove that person has committed the crime."
The receipt books of the court were not presented in court. None of the five witnesses could directly link Lord to the alleged theft and the F.O. said she was not told of the missing monies until two weeks later, at which time she directed that police be asked to investigate. Senior Magistrate Moody agreed and found Lord not guilty. He had been on interdiction since being charged but is expected to return to full duties and salary.
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