Former minister is freed of charges
While his opponent was in the House of Representatives, former P.U.P. Minister, Jose Coye, was relieved of charges of Theft and Obtaining Property through Deception. The withdrawal of the charges was long coming and there had been reports to this effect for weeks, but it was only today that Coye was freed of the charges. Similar charges against his driver, Curnel Flowers, were also withdrawn. The accuser, the reclusive Alfred Schakron who has constantly evaded the press, is known to have left the country earlier this week and according to reports, had written on two occasions to the D.P.P. saying that he no longer wanted to continue pressing charges against Coye. And this morning in court one of the letters dated June twentieth was read by a visibly upset Chief Magistrate Margaret McKenzie who said that the correspondence had just come to her attention. In fact, at the time when the charge was made, the former D.P.P. who has since left office, indicated that the file had not reached his desk before the former government minister was charged.
Jose Coye, Former P.U.P. Minister
“What was done to me was wrong; it was a grave miscarriage of justice. One, I was arrested without being questioned, the police arrested me without even being questioned up to today I have not been interviewed about this charge. Secondly, we never did get a disclosure; my lawyer never did get a disclosure about this. And thirdly, the magistrate said it, the charge was withdrawn by the complainant long ago and all over this period there was no move to withdraw the charge. I believe in the justice system, in the system on a whole I do believe and yes I will look at my legal options and I intend to pursue them with no malice and no hatred as was done on to me. I will not condemn the police as a police force but anyone who aided and abetted in carrying out such malicious acts against me should be brought to justice.”
Dickie Bradley, Attorney for the Accused
“From the twentieth of June there is a written correspondence from the complainant saying I have absolutely no interest in this matter, I’m telling you I want it to be dropped. Today, the twenty-fourth of July, that letter has only just come to the court. As the magistrate is saying, when a complainant issues his written instructions to withdraw the matter, it should be brought to the court as early as possible and be withdrawn.”
Oneyda Flores
“When were you informed of the letter?”
Dickie Bradley
“Actually, I heard about it a couple days ago and yesterday I confirmed that there was in fact a letter that would come to the court today in regards to the matter. We had spoken to the D.P.P. and she confirmed that in fact she had received a letter.”
Oneyda Flores
“Why do you think they dropped the charges?”
Dickie Bradley
“The truth ah di matta is that there is not a single piece of evidence to hold up the allegation against Mr. Coye.”
Jose Coye
“I want to leave you all with one thing in mind that I carry no hatred and I carry no malice and I seek no revenge.”
The charges against Coye followed a report made by Schakron that in December of 2007, he paid Coye’s driver, five hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars for the purchase of the Putt-Putt property on the Barracks and that after the February general elections, the driver had returned three hundred thousand and there was an outstanding amount of two hundred and seventy-five thousand for which the two were charged.
