Dana Malcolm 

Staff Writer 

With no evidence to support their claim, the prosecution has dropped their case against Pedro Jose Alfredo Grant Gallon, the Dominican Republic citizen who was accused of impersonating an officer in September 2023.

The Police, who publicized the arrest and charge, have not yet commented on the matter despite Magnetic Media queries.

Grant, for his part, has always vehemently denied the accusations that he was impersonating an officer and described the circumstances surrounding his arrest as unfair.

He contends that on the evening of July 13, 2023, he was being followed by a strange driver, concerned, he waited until the man pulled off at a bar, then took his license plate number and called the police, but police never came to help Grant. He alleges that the next time he saw them, they came with handcuffs to arrest him. In a search, police found his IDs which included his documentation for humanitarian work with the International Diplomatic Alliance (IDA) and police lights attached to his vehicle. In explaining the possession of those lights, Grant said he told officers that they had been in his car from his time in the Dominican Republic where he was involved in law enforcement.

Since that time, Grant has maintained several facts:

• The Police did not have a warrant to search his home and car;
• The Police took his documents including passports and IDs, one of which was issued by the IDA, and to date have not returned them despite being court-ordered to do so;
• The Police intimidated his wife with threats of deportation;
• He never showed any ID, flashing lights at the man following him, or claimed to be an officer.

Police have steadfastly refused to comment on the case despite numerous queries into the bizarre circumstances, even with serious allegations like intimidation against them. Grant was officially charged with Impersonating an Officer in September but IDA Head Jerrod Crockett told Magnetic Media despite seizing documents from Grant to support their case, no one even called the organization to see if they were real or fake.

Now, when called to provide evidence to the court as to why they arrested and charged the resident, the police and DPPs office drew a complete blank as Wilkie Arthur, Magnetic Media Court Correspondent, confirmed it was a lack of evidence that got the case dropped.

Despite this win serious damage has been done Grant claims, describing his life as a ‘living hell’ and ‘miserable’ since the accusations were publicized.

The IDA says it has been affected as well.

“That really put a hurt on us for the last six to eight months now because of accusations of fraudulent documents that everybody else has seen. We’re trying to prove our legitimacy now because you guys can’t verify any documents— before you put everything out there as public information,” Crockett said of the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force (RTCIPF)

The president also told our news team they had lost thousands of dollars in funding.

Following the closure of the case we reached out again to police to find out on what grounds Grant had been arrested and charged but no response was issued.

Wilkie Arthur

Freelance Court Correspondent

#TurksandCaicos, May 2, 2024 – On a bright and early Monday morning (15th April, 2024) in the Supreme Court before presiding lady Justice Ms. Tanya Lobban-Jackson and before His Honor The Chief Magistrate Jolyon Hatmin in the Magistrate’s Court, both courts were once again unable to proceed on its scheduled commencement time due to non or failure of attendance by the Prosecution of the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP).

Given the fact that this has now happened on more than one occasion, in both the Supreme and Magistrate’s Courts, judges and the learned Chief Magistrate have reached its final straw; they have cited the ‘no shows’ as a disrespect and a disregard for prompt and proper time management to be in attendance for legal proceedings.

From this reporters’ perspective, it appears the prosecution shows up when they like, any time they please and some are guilty of not showing at all without a call or message of explanation for the absenteeism.  The repeated instances have been called, “embarrassing” for the Office of the DPP, when defense counsel and the accused are present in the courtroom but the prosecutor is a ‘no-show, no call, no text.’

On at least two or three occasions, the Supreme Court judge was forced to return to her Chambers; exiting the court with a strongly worded warning, only to return with there still being no member of the Director of Public Prosecution present in court.

There has also been a promise that even serious cases could be dismissed due to this inappropriate practice.

In the final weeks of April, the country learned of a review by a KC out of the UK, who was looking into case progression at the DPPs office.  The Office has also hired a new Director, Philip Bennetts, KC, who takes office in the beginning of June, informed a TCIG media release.

#TurksandCaicos, May 2, 2024

Section 3(3) of the Firearms Ordinance CAP 18.09 requires the Supreme Court to impose a mandatory minimum sentence and a fine for certain firearms offences, except in circumstances where the court finds that there are exceptional circumstances, in which case the court must still impose both a sentence of imprisonment and a fine but which are proportionality consistent with the exceptional circumstances.  The court must ensure that the custodial sentence and fine are in keeping with the dominant purpose of Parliament in enacting the law, deterrence, is reflected in the length of the term and the quantum of the fine.

The Firearms Ordinance applies to all persons present within the Turks and Caicos Islands, regardless of status or origin.  The Parliament of the Turks and Caicos Islands had amended the Ordinance in 2022 to stiffen the penalty for possession and use of firearms with the stated intention of deterring such crimes in the Islands.

In five separate cases within a two-year period the Supreme Court found that there were exceptional circumstances, and only imposed fines.  In those cases, the defendant pleaded guilty to charges of possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition under the Firearms Ordinance. The judges found that there were “exceptional circumstances” and concluded that sentencing was therefore at large. Four of the offenders were fined and one was given a custodial sentence below the mandatory minimum. The opinion of the Court of Appeal, the higher court, was sought to confirm the true position of the law.

At the request of the then Learned Director of Public Prosecutions, Mr. Eugene Otuonye KC, and instructed by the Cabinet of the Turks and Caicos Islands, Attorney General, Honourable Rhondalee Braithwaite Knowles OBE KC, applied to the Court of Appeal seeking clarification as to whether the facts of those cases did actually constitute exceptional circumstances in keeping with legal principles and whether, in any event the Ordinance allowed the Supreme Court to impose non-custodial sentences.

The decision handed down by the Court of Appeal clarified the law, certifying that where exceptional circumstances exist the court has no jurisdiction to impose a non-custodial sentence.  It can impose a custodial sentence for a term and a fine in a quantum that is fair and just in the circumstances, consistent with the exceptional circumstances and having regard to the dominant purpose of Parliament in enacting the law.

However, it must give its reasons for so doing so, including any reduction in sentence.

Acting Director of Public Prosecutions, Dr. Angela Brooks welcomed the certification by the Court of Appeal and confirmed that since the recent amendments to the Firearms Ordinance, 8 firearms and ammunition prosecutions in total were done involving tourists from the United States, 3 of which are currently before the court with each of the defendants on bail.