G.O.B. argues to strip Titan Securities of multi-million dollar judgment

“We will appeal…we don’t think that judgment can stand.”  So said Prime Minister Dean Barrow on January twenty-first, 2016, upon hearing that the Supreme Court had awarded Titan International Securities nearly nine million Belize dollars in damages. The award is in respect of a raid at their Matalon Business Center offices on Coney Drive in 2014. Business owners, Bahamian nationals Kelvin Leach and Rohn Knowles, were the subject of extradition proceedings in relation to a five hundred million U.S. dollar tax-fraud scheme but it is they who have so far managed to prevail against the Government. Fourteen months later, the appeal is before President of the Court of Appeal Manuel Sosa and Justices Samuel Awich and Minnet Hafiz-Bertram. Following arguments this evening, Government’s attorney Denys Barrow said Titan does not deserve to be paid a penny.

Denys Barrow, Attorney for Government of Belize

Denys Barrow

“An award was made of four point odd million U.S. dollars for the Government’s search and seizure of Titan’s property; and they allege – and were successful in getting the court to accept that that caused the shutting down of their business and the complete loss of their business. And the Supreme Court awarded four plus million U.S. dollars. The aim of the Government and the F.I.U. is to get the Court of Appeal to reverse that award of damages and the case for the G.O.B. is that no damages at all should be awarded, so G.O.B. is trying to get it down to zero dollars. But it remains to complete arguments, so no comment at all about what has taken place.”

Reporter

“Can you generally share with us your opinion of your submissions – are you confident about the positions you have put forward?”

Denys Barrow

“At this stage again, I would not say anything about the degree of confidence I have in my submissions; but in a general proposition you can infer that there is some confidence.”

Arguments conclude on Thursday morning at eleven.