G.O.B. Cancels Mosquito Caye Land; Initiates Investigation into Document Forgery

We start tonight with important developments in the case of Amy Forte, a Belmopan resident who wrote the office of Prime Minister and Minister of Natural Resources Dean Barrow on Tuesday. She contends that her name was wrongly used to underline a swap of land on the private island of Mosquito Caye, located next to Blackadore Caye and northwest of Ambergris Caye, for land on Caye Caulker which she says she never bought. This afternoon, the Office of the Prime Minister issued a statement making several major findings and announcing several actions as a result of those findings.

Amy Forte

First, the statement accepts that “Miss Forte was never aware of Minister’s Fiat Grant number one-seventy-five of 2009 in her name; and that Miss Forte did not sign any conveyance to anyone of the land to which the Grant related.” Second, it accepts the result of a preliminary certificate of a handwriting expert, who asserts that the signature purporting to be Miss Forte’s is not genuine. This is notwithstanding the fact that a J.P. authenticated Miss Forte’s signature.  That J.P. is no less than former National Estate Officer Darlene Padron, now with the Ministry of the Environment.  Finally, it concludes that “the charge of fraud raised by Miss Forte is credible and must be taken extremely seriously and acted upon.” So what is being done? The Department will cancel both the grant and deed documents as well as the title for seven acres on Mosquito Caye granted to Andre Vega as compensation on the basis that the Caye Caulker land was privately owned.  Further, the Police Department has been asked to immediately investigate the matter with a view to bring criminal charges against any person or persons responsible for forgery.  This afternoon, the Police sent out a statement announcing the start of an investigation by the Major Crimes Unit, saying it will be investigated promptly and thoroughly, after which the file will be submitted to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions for directive.  In the criminal code, section one-seventy-six, an offense of forgery of official documents is described. It reads, “Every person who, with intent to defraud, or with intent to defeat, obstruct or pervert the course of justice or the execution of the law, forges any judicial or official document, shall be liable to imprisonment for ten years.”  In all, it is a serious business for the Government and for Miss Forte.