Caribbean News
DEA Evidence uncovers a network of Corruption in BVI government; Premier Andrew Fahie “a crook”
By Deandrea Hamilton
Editor
#BritishVirginIslands, April 28, 2022 – From the affidavit provided to the US District Court of Southern Florida which led to the shameful and shocking arrested of the premier of the British Virgin Islands; Andrew Fahie was not only prepared to allow the BVI to be used as a major drug transshipment port, but exposed that he is well aware of who are the drug dealers in his country; which government official was on their payroll and actually worked with drug and arms dealers to traffic these illicit products into the British Overseas territory.
Video and audio recordings, informed the undercover DEA officer, would support his account of the events which stared on October 16, 2021 and ended on April 28, 2022 with the arrest of the BVI premier, the BVI’s director of ports and her son, who bragged about a 20-year career in illegal smuggling, according to Special Agent Shad Aschleman, an 18-year officer with the US Drug Enforcement Agency.
Aschleman was posing as a fixer for a Mexican drug cartel and managed to get an incredible and scandalous amount of information over the six months.
Oleanvine Maynard, the ports director made it clear – according to the undercover officer – she was for sale, that she knew what to do to get the drugs through her port and that she would personally oversee the movement of the kilos of cocaine from Colombia to Puerto Rico or Florida. She called the undercover agent “my brother”, promised to set up shell companies to make payments and operations appear legitimate and said her Premier was “a crook
sometimes.” Her incognito name as the drug deal was set up was Rose, and she was yesterday arrested after exiting a private plane at the Opa-Locka airport in Miami and after allegedly receiving $200k in cash as part of good faith payment. Her arrest followed the Premier’s bust.
The Premier’s code name was Head Coach as they all colluded to establish this lucrative living; it amounted to $7.8 million in money from drug movement through the BVI said the affidavit. Fahie, was also arrested Thursday after exiting the airport at Opa-Locka; he had seen and allegedly approved the movement of $700k via private airplane. It was to be hidden on the aircraft, which would fly to the British Virgin Islands.
Oleanvine Maynard’s son, Kadeem Maynard was also arrested yesterday. Kadeem had accounts in the US linked to a real estate company his mother told the undercover officer; he used those accounts for payments and she offered that is where he could make payments to her for her part in the deal.
Kadeem Maynard was talkative and offered that he had two members of the Royal BVI police force on his payroll already.
When it comes to the premier, he shared that the UK did not pay him enough, that the UK was out to get him out of office and that he needed an extra $78k to pay off a person from Senegal, who helped him with some political problems.
It was like reading a crime novel; a 19-page nail bitter; but it was not fictional, it is all real and the document is the case document filed in the US District Court on Thursday.
Ironically the thing Fahie feared the most, eventually came to him. He was recorded saying to the agent, whom he suspected may have been working undercover; ‘I worked 20 years to get here, I don’t want it to end in 20 minutes.’
All three BVI citizens are in US custody – pre-trial detention.
The UK yesterday confirmed the arrests and commented. The Foreign Secretary Liz Truss saying she is “appalled.”
The island’s governor, John Rankin, has addressed the arrest in a statement on Thursday. He said despite this sinking blow to BVI of this arrest, he will still release the report from the recently concluded Commission of Inquiry. The reason; he said it was important to prove that the drug smuggling and money laundering arrests and charges had nothing to do with the UK; the report would expose a different set of concerns when it came to Andrew Fahie’s governance.
Barbados, February 12, 2026 – Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley was this afternoon officially sworn in for a third consecutive term, hours after delivering one of the most emphatic election victories in Caribbean political history — another complete capture of all 30 seats in Barbados’ House of Assembly.
The ceremony, conducted by President His Excellency Lt. Col. The Most Honourable Jeffrey Bostic, marked the formal start of a new
administration following the February 11, 2026 general election, which returned the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) to power with a renewed and overwhelming mandate.
In a statement after taking the oath, Mottley said she accepted the responsibility “with humility and resolve,” thanking the people of Barbados for placing their trust in her leadership once again and urging national unity as her government begins its new term. Attorney Wilfred Abrahams was also sworn in as Attorney General.
The result is historic not only for its scale but for its consistency. This is the third straight general election in which the BLP has won every constituency, reinforcing Mottley’s dominance in national politics and extending an unmatched era of one-party control in the modern democratic period.
Voting day unfolded under the watch of a CARICOM Election Observation Mission, led by Antigua and Barbuda’s Supervisor of Elections Ian Hughes and supported by senior electoral officials from Belize and Jamaica. The team engaged key institutions ahead of the poll and monitored the process across the island.
Regional leaders were swift in their congratulations.
Guyana’s President Irfaan Ali described the outcome as “emphatic and historic,” saying the clean sweep reflected how deeply Mottley’s
leadership has connected with Barbadians and expressing optimism about strengthening ties between the two countries.
Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness also hailed the victory, noting that her re-election provides an opportunity to deepen cooperation within CARICOM and advance shared regional priorities.
The scale of the win again leaves Barbados without a parliamentary opposition, a reality that has become a defining feature of the political landscape since 2018. Supporters argue the repeated mandate reflects public confidence in Mottley’s stewardship of economic reform, climate diplomacy, the transition to a republic, and Barbados’ expanding global influence.
Now, newly sworn in and backed by another unanimous parliamentary majority, Mottley begins a third term with both extraordinary political capital and equally high expectations at home and across the region.
Liberty Caribbean is Diamond Sponsor of CANTO Connect 2026 and 42nd AGM
Port of Spain, TRININDAD & TOBAGO (February 1, 2026) — Liberty Caribbean, the operators of Flow. Liberty Business and BTC, has reaffirmed its commitment to turning regional connectivity into measurable economic and social outcomes as Diamond Sponsor of CANTO Connect 2026 and its 42nd Annual General Meeting.
CANTO is the leading regional body that brings together telecommunications operators, ICT providers, regulators, governments, and industry partners to support the development of the Caribbean’s digital and communications landscape.
Simone Martin-Sulgan, Vice President and General Manager, Flow Trinidad & Tobago delivered the sponsor’s address on behalf of Liberty Caribbean.
“The work of laying fibre and lighting towers is done; connectivity is now our foundation,” she said.
“The real task before us is to translate that foundation into innovation, productivity and prosperity for our people. Intelligent connectivity,
such as networks designed for 5G, AI and IoT, will be the platform for smarter public services, more resilient systems and scaled opportunities for Caribbean entrepreneurs.”
Martin-Sulgan emphasised that infrastructure alone will not deliver sustainable progress.
“Digital progress must become digital prosperity. That means creating career pathways for young people, helping local businesses scale and ensuring citizens across our communities can fully participate in the digital economy. A connected Caribbean should also be a confident, creative and globally competitive Caribbean,” she said.
Liberty Caribbean is represented by a senior delegation at CANTO Connect to support the conference objectives of aligning policy, investment and execution across the region under this year’s theme ‘Elevate the Caribbean – From Connectivity to Global Competitiveness’.
Liberty Caribbean’s delegation includes Inge Smidts, Chief Executive Officer; Desron Bynoe, VP and General Manager, Flow Barbados; Susanna O’Sullivan, VP and General Manager, North Caribbean; Marilyn Sealy, Senior Director, Head of Communications; Dominic Boon, VP, People; Daniel Neiva, Chief Commercial Officer, B2B; Bradley Ramcharan, Director, B2B, Trinidad & Tobago; Yolande Headley, Country Manager, Dutch East Caribbean; and Jade Reymond, Country Manager, Flow Anguilla.
Martin-Sulgan thanked CANTO’s local secretariat for convening the forum and urged delegates to convert conversation into action.
“If we align policy, capital and capability, the Caribbean can move from connectivity to competitiveness. Liberty Caribbean will continue to invest in resilient networks, nurture homegrown talent and partner to deliver measurable social and economic value across our markets,” she said.
