Former British Virgin Islands Premier Andrew Fahie has been sentenced to 11 years in federal prison on drug trafficking and money laundering conspiracy charges.
The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Kathleen M. Williams on Monday.
The US Drug Enforcement Administration, DEA, says Fahie agreed to facilitate the safe passage of tons of Colombian cocaine through BVI ports headed to Miami.
The agency, which carried out a sting operation focused on Fahie , says the then-premier stood to make millions from the scheme, which would be funneled through different businesses or smuggled back to the BVI to hide the source of the funds.
According to evidence introduced at trial, during March and April 2022, Fahie, managing director of the BVI Ports Authority Oleanvine Maynard and the port director’s son, Kadeem Stephan Maynard, participated in a series of meetings with the purported Sinaloa Cartel drug trafficker to broker the arrangement.
Fahie and the elder Maynard agreed to secure licences, shield the cocaine-filled boats while in BVI’s ports, and grease the palms of BVI government officials and employees. They discussed bringing 3,000 kilogrammes of cocaine through a BVI port as a test run, followed by 3,000 kilogrammes once or twice a month for four months.
They were arrested in Miami in April 2022, as they prepared to pick up a US $700,000 cash advance on their deal. The younger Maynard was arrested in St. Thomas.
The Maynards previously pled guilty to conspiracy to import cocaine and were sentenced to nine years and three months and four years and seven months, respectively.
At the time of the arrest, the U.K. government was concluding a corruption investigation of Fahie’s administration. British authorities say it was not related to the DEA’s operation.
Fahie’s lawyers argue that the former premier was framed by the United Kingdom, which administers the BVI archipelago as an overseas territory.
Comments