Today Jose Coye’s former colleagues were in Belmopan debating the budget but the former Caribbean Shores Area Representative Joe Coye was in court fighting for his good name. Today was a vindication day of sorts for the former Minister of Health Joe Coye and his driver Cornel Flowers. They were jointly charged on April 25th for theft and obtaining property by deception. That was on the strength of an affidavit from Businessman Alfred Schakron who says he gave Coye $575,000 for what’s known as the “Putt Putt” property. Well Shackron says he never got the land and he claimed Jose Coye only returned $300,000 and that’s why he went to the police who arrested Coye and Flowers. Today they reappeared in court and the charges were dropped.
Shackron wrote a letter to the DPP on June 20th saying he wanted no further court action. Chief Magistrate Margaret McKenzie told the former Minister
and two term Caribbean Shores Area Representative he was free to go and scolded the police prosecutor for waiting more than a month to withdraw the charges against Coye. So it was a courtroom victory for the former Minister but the battle to clear his name is only beginning. Keith Swift was at court.
Keith Swift Reporting,
The charge of theft was dropped and Jose Coye was smiling this morning but the former Minister of Health wasn’t happy.
Jose Coye, Cleared of Theft Charge
“I consider this to be a grave miscarriage of justice against me and it was calculated yes by one person in particular, a member of the political directorate to discredit my family and myself. The charges against me were totally unfounded, there was never any evidence to support it.”
Keith Swift,
Who is that person Mr. Coye?
Jose Coye,
“I will leave it to you all to speculate. Again you are good at that but what I want to make quite clear is that what was done to me was wrong, it was a grave miscarriage of justice. I was arrested without even being questioned. The police arrested me without even be questioned, up to today I have not been interviewed about this charge.”
Richard “Dickie Bradley, Coye’s Attorney
“The truth of the matter is that there is not a single piece of evidence to hold up the allegation against Mr. Coye which from day one he has said to you, listen to what has happened – one person says I gave a large sum of money to another person, the police does not even come to the other person to say sir a person says he gave you some money. They don’t even ask him, they go on the television and say it is imminent that he will be arrested, they go and arrest him and bring him with great fanfare to the court.”
Keith Swift,
Mr. Coye our information is that Mr. Shackron asked for the charges to be dropped because he was threatened. Do you know anything about that?
Jose Coye,
“I don’t know anything about it. I don’t know about any threat, I certainly didn’t and nobody on my behalf or my instructions threatened no one. I had no need to threaten anyone.”
Richard “Dickie Bradley,
“Take it from where the Magistrate left off that in fact from the 20th of June there is a written correspondence by the complainant saying I have absolutely no interest in this matter, I am telling you I want it to be dropped from the 20th of June. You explain to us, since you want to try the case, why
is it that today the 24th of July that letter has only just come to the court. As the Magistrate was saying, when a complainant issues his written instructions to withdraw a matter it should be brought to the court as early as possible and be withdrawn.
So from the 20th of June until now the two accused persons are still up and down and you still have it that they are image is tarnished. It is the person who brings the complaint whose image is tarnished. How could you make such a major complainant and then in a matter of weeks lose interest and write a letter saying you want it to be withdrawn.”
Keith Swift,
He says he was threatened.
Richard “Dickie Bradley,
“Can’t he say who is threatening him? He can’t say that? How do you mean I am being threatened, that is not in the letter. I saw the letter and there is no such thing in the letter. The question is why is it from the 20th of June they were not sent for and told you are free to go because the person who brought the charge, something gaan wrong and they don’t want it and then you are telling us the man is claiming they threatened him but in the letter he doesn’t say that.”
Adele Ramos, Amandala
“What is the essence of the letter?”
Richard “Dickie Bradley,
“The essence of the letter is, it is a very short letter, two lines, to say that I am instructing that I have no interest in this matter, I want it to be dropped.”
And while he is a free man, Coye concedes that damage has been done.
Jose Coye,
“So to me the extent to which damage was done, it was indeed to those who fabricated it about me but the vindication continues today.”
Keith Swift,
Sir will you remain in electoral politics?
Jose Coye,
“Well those are options that are left open to me. I intend to continue to serve public interest, I have no intention of abandoning or abdicating responsibility for my community and my commitment as a citizen of this country. And 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 people who went against me, they worship the same God that at I do and they worship that God through the same church that I worship him and if they have any sense of guilt I would advise them to embrace the redemptive power of Jesus Christ and go and offer public apology to me.”
But Coye left the court house with his lawyer knowing fully well that he’ll have to return to court if he wants an apology. Reporting for 7NEWS Keith Swift.
Coye has reserved the right to sue but says he holds no malice against the Police Department. He says they were just doing their job. We were unable to reach Shackron to elaborate on why he withdrew the complaint. He is reportedly out of the country. He has told confidantes that he received death threats.
