Voice of: Chester Williams - Commissioner of Police
"Well first and foremost let me have the record reflect that. The comptroller of custom is my friend and he is a person I have utmost respect for, but I can state categorically that the comptroller of customs call me this afternoon and I explained to him why it is that those persons including the custom officer were going to be charged in respect to the departure of that tug boat to Roatan Honduras. Yes, he tried as best as he can to explain that the officer could not have been held accountable because the company did not disclose the purpose of the voyage to Honduras and I said to him as a prudent public officer we are under quarantine process at that time whereby you had the SI which clearly states that the borders are closed, expect for allowing cargo to come in and so it would have expected that a prudent public officer who would be engaging in granting permissions for a boat to leave the country or to come into the country to ask one very important question: what is the purpose of your voyage? To see whether or not the purpose of the voyage falls within the SI and if it is that the purpose do not fall within the SI then permission should not be granted. If it falls within the SI then it shall be granted. The comptroller himself admitted to me that the purpose of the voyage was not for cargo. The tug boat went to undergo repairs. Now that does not fall within the scope of the SI and so it is only right that these public officers who granted the permission for this tug boat to have left the country and return with 5 Covid positive persons who later on ended up into the Independence community to be held accountable. This is an egregious infraction and we cannot allow it to go just like that and I explained that to the comptroller. Yes I understand that we wanted to stand up for his personnel and he has all rights to do so, but to say that the arrest is unwarranted is neither here nor there, This is not an offence that requires intention, it's a strict liability to offence. You allow the boat to have gone and the purpose of the voyage did not fall within the SI, you are liable and I also heard the comptroller said that we objected to bail. For Christ sake man that is not true. When the gentlemen went to court this afternoon, the prosecutor called me and ask me if the offenses are bailable. I said to him yes they are bailable, because they are not charged under SI 119, they are charged under the SI which was signed by the minister of health which did not restrict bail. The one now restrict bail and so I told the prosecutor that they are bailable offences and based on that the prosecutor did not object to bail and the gentlemen were granted bail. So again, to say that we objected to bail with a view ti have these public officers sent to prison, I cannot accept that, because it is the farthest thing from the truth."

Jules Vasquez, Reporter
"Will there be any charges for the owners of the tug?"

Voice of: Chester Williams - Commissioner of Police
"There has to, at the end of the day they are ones who sent the tug boat to Roatan Honduras on a voyage that did not fall within the scope of the regulation and so yes, they will be charged, if not yet. I know that I have given the directive to the investigator to also charge the company in terms of their infraction and let me also state here that the whole issue as ir relates to the company, whether or not they said to the custom or the port or the immigration officer why they were going, they have a responsibility to have ask. To ascertain that the purpose of the voyage is one that falls within the regulation and that is where they slipped up."