In what has to be one of the most glaring examples of corrupt governance in the Caribbean, Britain’s investigators have discovered that ex-Premier Michael Misick stole as much as $5 billion from Turks and Caicos citizens in a massive land scam.
Jon Llewellyn, who was sent to the TCI as a land adviser, discovered that between $2.5 and $5 billion went missing from the TCI treasury as a result of the former government undervaluing land that was sold during that period.
The treasury was raided by the insanely corrupt Michael Misick, leader of the Progressive National Party (PNP), who was removed from power by British officials who are getting ready to prosecute Misick for his many crimes.
Misick is good friends with several members of the PLP in the Bahamas. PLP MP Obie Wilchombe was the best man at Misick’s failed marriage to Lisa Ray.
An example of the land scam corruption was given by Clayton Greene, current leader of the PNP, who said he once represented a client who was able to purchase 2,500 acres of Crown land for only $15 million. The land located on Middle Caicos has been conservatively appraised to be worth at least $250 million.
Mr Bellingham said that if the actual value of the land sold had reached the treasury it could have been invested in infrastructure to serve the peoples of the islands.
The shocking crime is reminiscent of the shameful grab by Bahamian real estate agents and lawyers in the 1980’s, where most of Winton and Palmdale were stolen from a dying man and divied up between a number of corrupt Bahamian real estate brokers and their crooked lawyers. Several politicians were also involved.
Many of the real estate companies are now among the largest in The Bahamas and most of the people involved got their wealth from the scam.
Unfortunately, the Bahamas does not have British overseers, so the corrupt participants got away with their crime.
