Lucians await fate

Today Friday wilL see two St Lucian nationals being sentenced on eight counts of forgery at the Serious Offences Court.

George Joseph, 36, and Nicky Isidore, 37, each pleaded guilty on Wednesday to being in possession without lawful authority, of First Caribbean International Bank manager’s cheques in the territorial waters of St Vincent and the Grenadines which they knew to be false.{{more}} The cheques included the sums of: $9,000, $8,950, $12,000, $9,598, 4,000, $13,552.80, $2396 and $13,000.

The men were jointly charged with fellow St Lucians, Sawandi Goddard, 23 and 28-year-old Ernie Charles. The charges were dismissed from the other men after the prosecution offered no evidence against them. They had pleaded not guilty.

The Court heard that the four men left St Lucia on June 14, 2008, on a speed boat captained by Joseph, bound for St Vincent. Members of the Coast Guard intercepted the men in Wallilabou. When they were questioned as to their reasons for coming to these shores, they men revealed that they came to shop.

The men were then taken to the Coast Guard base and a more extensive search conducted on the boat found nine cheques in a drawer. Investigations carried out revealed that one of the cheques was genuine and was used to forge the other eight. It was said that the cheques were made out to several business places here.

Isidore said that it was a man from St Lucia who gave him the cheques to be cashed in St Vincent.

Counsel Arthur Williams, who was representing the defendant at the time, withdrew himself after Isidore pleaded guilty.

Isidore has four previous convictions of fraud in St Lucia.