SOCU workload has greatly expanded
The workload of the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) has increased tremendously over the last few months as in addition to its regular duties the unit is also looking at 25 forensic audits.
This newspaper reported in February that the Unit was reviewing 18 audit reports. However it was recently revealed that that number has increased to 25. Most of the audits have multiple aspects which have to be investigated.
The reports pertains to National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL), the Guyana Marketing Corporation (NGMC), Cricket World Cup, the Sparendaam Housing Project (Pradoville 2), the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB), Guyana Power and Light Inc, Mahaica, Mahaicony, Abary-Agriculture Development Authority, Guyana Office for Investment, the Hydrometeorological Office, the National Communications Network (NCN), the Marriott Hotel, the Guyana Energy Agency/GuyOil, the Guyana Gold Board, the National Frequency Management Unit, the One Laptop Per Family project, the E-Governance Project, the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation, the water cannon, Anil Nandlall and the Commonwealth Law Reports, Central Housing and Planning Authority, National Insurance Scheme, Scrap Metal Unit, GoInvest, the Guyana Lotteries Company and the EPA.
With NICIL alone, investigators have to conduct 86 investigators.
Stabroek News was informed that of this number the NGMC, Law Reports and Pradoville 2 probes have been completed. Charges were laid in the first two and the third has been with legal advisors for several weeks now.
Former President Bharrat Jagdeo and members of his cabinet as well as close affiliates have been accused of purchasing undervalued land. All those who benefited were questioned by SOCU officials and based on this newspaper’s information the unit has recommended that charges be instituted against some of those questioned.
This newspaper was told that in addition to these audits, the unit is looking at several money laundering cases forwarded by the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) as well as a number of gold smuggling matters.
Director of The Fraud Company, Dr Sam Sittlington, who was hired as a consultant to look into the operations of the Unit, had said in January that with in excess of 300 investigations pending, SOCU was unable to effectively tackle them with its current staff complement. At the time of Sittlington’s comments, the unit only had four investigators.
Stabroek News later learnt that the capacity of the Unit was boosted and that there are expected to be more additions.
Sittlington spent some time in Guyana in 2015 working closely with the Unit and returned early this year on a follow-up visit.