Bahamians, Rohn Knowles and Kelvin Leach, haven't made the news in several months. That's after they took their civil case for damages against the Government of Belize all the way to the Caribbean Court of Justice. But, they're still facing the prospect of being extradited to the US to face trial for conspiracy to commit securities fraud, tax fraud, and money laundering.
To refresh your memory, back in September 2014, the US Department of Justice unsealed an indictment which accused Knowles; Leach; their securities trading company, Titan International Securities; and others of being part of a securities fraud operation which scammed the US government out of 500 million US dollars in taxes.
The US requested their extradition, and the Attorney General's Ministry was proceeding against them in the Magistrate's Court, until Knowles, Leach and their attorneys made a power play to shut it down completely. They applied to the Supreme Court for what is called a "case stated", where the court is asked to make a pronouncement on a matter of law.
In this instance, Knowles and Leach wanted Justice Michelle Arana to examine the manner in which the US authorities got the evidence against them.
Justice Arana ruled that their application was premature, and she sent the case back to the Magistrate's Court for the extradition process to continue. But, before that could resume, the Bahamians and their attorneys promptly filed an appeal of Justice Arana's decision. So, that means that the extradition is stayed until the appeal case is heard and determined.
That appeal hearing took place today before a panel of Appeal Court Judges, and their attorneys, Eamon Courtenay and Leslie Mendez, attempted to convince the court of their position. They say that the US government did not strictly follow the procedures under Belize's Interception of Communications Act, and they did not utilize the mechanisms under the extradition Treaty between the two countries. The Bahamians say that the US authorities have breached their constitutional rights, which should protect them against arbitrary search and seizures by law enforcement.
The Attorney General's Ministry, which was represented by Deputy Solicitor General Samantha Matute-Tucker and Crown Counsel Agassi Finnegan, responded and argued that their complaints are premature, and that these are issues which should be determined by the US trial judge, if the men are actually extradited to face trial. They further argued that the Bahamians made a misstep when they applied for this "case stated". The Attorney General's Ministry is of the opinion that these issues are better addressed by a habeas corpus application, and that the Bahamians ought to have allowed the extradition proceedings to run its course.
The appeal hearing lasted for the entire day, and the judges have reserved their decision for a date to be announced. Of importance is that if Knowles and Leach are successful at the Court of Appeal, a permanent stay of the extradition proceedings could be granted, and that would mean that they would no longer face extradition to the US.
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