The Tribune HOUSE & HOME
123 No. 130, Monday, June 1, 2026
WOMAN TRAUMATISED
AFTER BOYFRIEND KILLED
Girlfriend describes surviving ambush that killed 23-year-old man
By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Chief Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net
THE girlfriend of a 23-year-old man shot and killed just feet from his Elizabeth home recalled ducking for cover as bullets rang out, only to discover moments later that she had been hit and her boyfriend fatally wounded.
The woman, who asked for her name to be withheld, said she now suffers nightmares and fears she may
never be able to recover from the terrifying ordeal. “I don't think I could go in another relationship for as long as I live. I can't take that,” she told The Tribune yesterday. “I don’t want to get attached to anybody anymore because that was my safe place.”
Her comments came three days after her boyfriend of five years, Aljaron Stubbs, was murdered. Police were alerted to
TRAUMA - SEE PAGE FIVE
Murder suspect gets two years jail after eight months on the run
D’ANGELO CULMER
By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net
FORMER fugitive and murder accused D’Angelo Culmer told a magistrate he was getting closer to God and staying out of sight before he was sentenced to two years in prison on Friday for escaping from the Magistrate’s Court Complex last October. Culmer, 36, appeared jovial during his arraignment before Deputy Chief Magistrate Shaka Serville, even as his escape had triggered an eight-month manhunt, internal police investigations and tribunal
CULMER - SEE PAGE SEVEN
INNOVATION and National Devleopment Minister Sebas Bastian.
JONATHAN GARDINER
Gaming Act doesn’t bar Cabinet picks, board says
By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net
THE Gaming Board said on Friday that the Gaming Act does not bar Sebas Bastian and Leslia Miller-Brice from serving in Cabinet, but critics quickly accused the regulator of dodging the question of whether the ministers or their close relatives still hold direct or indirect interests in licensed gaming houses.
The board’s statement, released two weeks after it was originally expected, came amid scrutiny over the appointments of Mr Bastian and Ms Miller-Brice,
GAMING - SEE PAGE THREE
VAST SCALE OF DEA DRUG TRAFFICKING PROBE REVEALED
By INSIGHT TEAM
THE arrest of Jonathan ‘Player’ Gardiner after the Election Day plane crash has revealed the vast scale of the US Drug Enforcement Agency’s (DEA) ongoing investigations into US-bound narcotics trafficking through The Bahamas, The Tribune can reveal today. Gardiner’s arrest links him
not only to the November 2024 indictment of former Royal Bahamian Police Force Chief Superintendent Elvis Curtis, and 12 others, but also to a charge sheet in Atlanta, Georgia, where 14 individuals are accused, in total, of 29 offences relating to firearms, money laundering, robbery, drug trafficking and conspiracy charges.
10 AND 11
ALJARON STUBBS
Bahamas signs ICAO deal to boost aviation oversight
By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net
THE Bahamas has signed an agreement with the International Civil Aviation Organization aimed at strengthening aviation regulation, safety oversight, and international cooperation.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Fourth Civil Aviation Legal Advisers Forum (CALAF/4), held from 27–29 May at the Grand Hyatt Baha Mar in Nassau, Minister of Energy, Utilities and Aviation Jobeth Colbey-Davis said the agreement marks a significant step in aligning The Bahamas more closely with international civil aviation standards and improving the country’s global aviation footprint.
The forum was hosted by ICAO in collaboration with the Civil Aviation Authority Bahamas and brought together legal experts, regulators, policymakers, academics, aviation counsel, and industry stakeholders from more than 20 countries to examine the evolving legal and regulatory framework shaping global air transport.
Under the theme “The Future of International Civil Aviation: Legal Trends and Institutional Resilience,” discussions over the three-day forum focused on a wide range of issues, including aviation safety and security oversight, passenger rights legislation, data protection in international air carriage, aviation litigation trends, sustainability obligations, and the legal implications of emerging
aerospace and near-space operations.
Ms Colbey-Davis said the newly signed agreement with ICAO will support The Bahamas in strengthening its compliance with international aviation standards and further developing its regulatory and institutional capacity. She said this includes improving oversight mechanisms, reinforcing safety and security protocols, and enhancing cooperation with international aviation partners.
She added that the agreement is also expected to have broader economic implications, particularly in relation to tourism and investor confidence, by strengthening trust in the reliability and safety of the country’s aviation system.
Ms Colbey-Davis told reporters that The Bahamas is actively advancing its position within the regional aviation sector and is steadily moving toward becoming a stronger competitor in Caribbean aviation.
She said ongoing reforms within the aviation sector are focused on strengthening safety systems and ensuring that all aircraft operations into The Bahamas meet international civil aviation requirements.
She noted that consistent compliance with International Civil Aviation Organization standards is essential to expanding air connectivity and increasing airline confidence in operating routes to the country.
Ms Colbey-Davis also addressed regulatory priorities being discussed during the forum, including
passenger rights protections. She said there is growing recognition of the need for clearer and more enforceable frameworks to ensure airlines provide appropriate care and transparency in situations where disruptions are within their control.
She distinguished between operational disruptions outside airline responsibility, such as severe weather and air traffic control issues, and those within airline control, stating that greater attention must be placed on passenger entitlements in the latter category.
Beyond passenger rights, Ms Colbey-Davis said modern aviation governance now requires strong legal foundations and institutional resilience due to increasingly complex global challenges. She pointed to cybersecurity threats targeting aviation systems, environmental and sustainability obligations linked to climate change, and the rapid introduction of new and emerging technologies, all of which require coordinated international responses.
She emphasised that small island developing states like The Bahamas face particular vulnerabilities due to limited resources and geographic exposure, making international partnerships, technical assistance, and regional cooperation essential to maintaining safe and efficient aviation systems.
She described forums such as CALAF/4 as critical platforms for enabling dialogue, knowledge exchange, and capacity-building among states and industry stakeholders, noting that such engagements help strengthen legal frameworks and improve regulatory consistency across jurisdictions.
The CALAF/4 programme featured director general and legal counsel roundtables, expert panel discussions, technical exchanges on international air law developments, and structured networking sessions aimed at fostering collaboration between regulators, airlines, and legal practitioners.
Minister of Energy, Utilities and Aviation Jobeth Colbey-Davis (centre) signed an agreement with ICAO to strengthen aviation safety and regulations. Ms Coleby-Davis is pictured with Dr Kenneth Romer, Director of Aviation, Michael Strachan CEO fo BACSWN and The Bahamas ICAO representative along with ICAO and other government officials.
Photos: Nikia Charlton
Critics slam Gaming Board for dodging questions on ministers
GAMING from page one
both of whom have ties to the gaming industry and were sworn in as Cabinet ministers on May 15.
Mr Bastian, the Fort Charlotte MP, was appointed Minister of Innovation and National Development after stepping down earlier this year as chief executive officer of Island Luck. Ms Miller-Brice, the Seabreeze MP, was appointed Minister of Culture, Arts and Heritage. Her husband, Leander Brice, reportedly resigned as chief executive officer of GLK Limited, trading as A Sure Win Gaming House Operator, before her appointment.
Questions about their appointments have centred on whether the Gaming Act permits people with gaming industry interests, or close family connections to such interests, to serve in Cabinet.
The board insisted the law does not establish qualifications or disqualifications for Cabinet appointments.
“The Gaming Act does not create any bar or qualification for appointment to the Cabinet,” the board said. “The Act restricts and regulates who may hold the types of licences provided for thereunder, not who may serve in Cabinet.”
The board pointed specifically to Sections 25 and 26 of the Gaming Act, provisions that have become the focus of public debate.
Section 25 says a person may not hold an employment licence under the Act if that person is a Cabinet minister, a member of the Gaming Board, or a spouse, child, parent or sibling of such a person.
Section 26 extends those restrictions to other gaming licences and certain financial interests in gaming licence holders. Among other things, the section prohibits a Cabinet minister, Gaming Board member, or specified family member from holding a financial interest of five percent or more in the holder of certain gaming licences.
According to the Gaming Board, those restrictions
Mitchell
“Instead, the Gaming Board has chosen to hide behind the shield of confidentiality notwithstanding that this is a matter of significant national interest.”
- Sen. Arinthia Komolafe
apply to the holding of licences and financial interests, not to a person’s eligibility to become a minister.
“Under the Gaming Act, a Cabinet Minister who has a ‘financial interest’ of 5 percent or more in a licence is disqualified from holding such an interes,” the board said. “The Act does not state that such a person is disqualified from being a Cabinet Minister. Rather, it provides that the person is disqualified from holding that financial interest.”
The board said a financial interest includes the right to share in profits or revenue from a gaming operation, as well as direct or indirect ownership of voting shares or voting rights attached to shares in a company that holds a gaming licence.
However, the board said the definition does not extend to all forms of ownership or investment. Excluded are passive interests held through publicly traded companies, ordinary commercial relationships with gaming operators, and investments held through mutual funds or similar arrangements where the investor has no control over investment decisions.
The Gaming Board did not address the affairs of any specific licence holder, citing confidentiality obligations imposed by the Gaming Act.
“The Board is bound by the strict statutory confidentiality provisions contained in the Act and is therefore
unable to divulge specific details regarding the internal affairs of its licence holders or records relating to individual licences,” the statement said.
However, Long Island MP Dr Andre Rollins said the board’s statement did not explain how the appointments of Mr Bastian and Ms Miller-Brice were made compliant with the law. He said the Bahamian people deserve to know how the ministers have treated their financial interests in gaming houses to justify their inclusion in Cabinet.
Dr Rollins said Section 25 disqualifies Cabinet ministers and their specified relatives from holding gaming employment licences, while Section 26 prohibits Cabinet ministers and their specified relatives from holding other categories of gaming licences or a financial interest of five percent or more in the holder of such licences. He said the rules were designed to protect regulatory integrity and guard against undue influence in an industry vulnerable to
calls FNM demands for Halkitis resignation ‘stupid’
By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter
ebowleg@tribunemedia.net
PROGRESSIVE Liberal
Party chairman Fred Mitchell has dismissed opposition calls for Finance Minister Michael Halkitis to resign as “stupid”, escalating the government’s defence of the minister after he admitted he previously served as a director of Top Notch Builders.
Mr Mitchell, in a statement responding to the Free National Movement, said the opposition’s demand was based on what he called “far-fetched illogic” and insisted there was no conflict of interest.
“The demand for the resignation is as stupid as it is idle,” he said. “The position of the FNM is based in a far fetched illogic. This is a party still dumbstruck by their loss at the polls and in Michael Pintard's desperate attempt to hold on to his leadership, he is lashing out in every direction like a chicken without a head.”
“The fact is the Minister has no legal nexus that would suggest a conflict of interest. What you have is a set of rank, bitter amateurs in the FNM trying to play lawyer. They have no legal, ethical or moral case to stand on. What we have left is idle demands of a vapid political group."
The statement came after Mr Halkitis confirmed on Thursday that he previously served as a director for Top Notch Builders, reversing
his initial denial of any involvement with the company when questioned by The Tribune a day earlier.
Mr Halkitis said he joined the company in mid-2019 after being approached by an attorney, not by Eric Gardiner, a convicted drug smuggler. He said the company suspended operations by April 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and that he resigned from Top Notch Builders and all other directorships in 2021. The disclosure had intensified scrutiny around allegations contained in a US Drug Enforcement Administration affidavit and questions about Mr Gardiner, an Election Day plane crash victim who has since been charged with drug offences in the United States.
Documents from The Bahamas’ registry of records have linked Top Notch Builders to Mr Gardiner.
Top Notch Builders secured the $35m deal to construct the government’s Eight Mile Rock administrative complex one day before the May 10, 2017 general election. Corporate records also revealed the firm owns Complete Construction, the company developing the government’s flagship Carmichael Village affordable housing project, which got underway last term.
Up to press time Thursday, both the FNM and the Coalition of Independents had called for Mr Halkitis to resign over his admission.
“As a private citizen I was involved in financial consulting and corporate services consulting,” Mr Halkitis said during an Office of the Prime Minister press briefing.
“I was approached to provide consulting and directorship services to Top Notch Builders, in particular setting up proper corporate
money laundering risks.
Dr Rollins said the public has not been told whether Mr Bastian divested himself of shares in Island Luck or whether Ms Miller-Brice’s husband divested himself of shares in A Sure Win.
In his statement, Dr Rollins said: “Therefore, in this environment of non-transparency, we must assume that Mr Bastian still retains his ownership interest in Island Luck.”
He said the situation was “very muddy” and showed the government’s disregard for the public’s right to clear answers.
Dr Rollins also questioned whether the government was relying on an exception in the Gaming Act for certain indirect interests held through funds or investments where the person has no control over investment decisions. He argued that the exception is arguably applicable only to passive investments and not legal trusts, which he said do not necessarily prevent a shareholder from taking an active role in a gaming operator’s decision-making.
Senator Arinthia
governance procedures and structures.”
Mr Halkitis said he was not hired by Mr Gardiner.
“I resigned as director of that company and all the other directorships that I held in 2021,” he added.
Mr Halkitis said official records at the Registrar General’s Department would show the company’s corporate structure and ownership.
“All corporate documents are available from the Registrar General’s Department,” he said. “Anybody who’s interested in the complete story can get the
Komolafe also criticised the board’s response, calling it “an exercise in linguistic gymnastics and declaration of the obvious without addressing the questions raised by the Bahamian people.”
She said Bahamians did not ask the Gaming Board whether the Gaming Act defines who may be appointed to Cabinet, saying Cabinet qualifications are set by the Constitution and should be addressed by the Attorney General or determined by the courts.
Mrs Komolafe said the central question is whether Mr Bastian, Mrs Miller-Brice or their family members have direct or indirect beneficial or financial interests in Island Luck, A Sure Win or any other legally operated gaming house or gaming licensee.
She said this includes ultimate beneficial ownership of any company, trust, foundation or other estate planning vehicle connected to a Gaming Board licensee.
complete set of documents which not only show who the directors are but who the shareholders are, who the owners of the company were at the time, and they would see that it’s not who some people say it was.”
Mr Halkitis served as Minister of State for Finance from 2012 to 2017 during the last Christie administration.
He was sworn in as Minister of Economic Affairs and Leader of Government Business in the Senate after the 2021 general election.
In a 2017 document, Mr Gardiner testified that he did not own a single share in
Mrs Komolafe said the board was not being asked to disclose internal licenceholder records, but to confirm whether the newly appointed ministers and their family members have any direct or indirect beneficial or financial interest in a licensee of the board.
She said if Mr Bastian, Mrs Miller-Brice or their family members hold direct or indirect interests in a company licensed under the Gaming Act, either their ministerial appointments should be revoked or the Gaming Board must revoke the licences of Island Luck, A Sure Win or any other company in which they have an interest.
The Free National Movement has not said whether it would challenge the appointments in court.
“The press statement issued by the Gaming Board and signed by nobody fails to answer this simple and straightforward question directly,” she said. “Instead, the Gaming Board has chosen to hide behind the shield of confidentiality notwithstanding that this is a matter of significant national interest.”
Top Notch Builders despite being “the president and a director” of the company. He asserted that Top Notch Builders was owned 100 percent by Paradise Productions Inc Company, an entity fully owned by Samson Hield, who has been listed in previous Tribune Business reports as the “lead contractor” for the Eight Mile Rock public-private partnership deal.
When asked how Mr Gardiner was able to obtain contracts with the government, Mr Halkitis said: "I don't want to comment on that."
MINISTER of Culture, Arts and Heritage Leslia Miller-Brice.
MINISTER of Innovation and National Development Sebas Bastian.
Advocate pushes for shelter 21 years after sister’s murder
By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net
COMMUNITY advo-
cate Shavonne Munnings
is pushing to turn 21 years of grief into a refuge for battered women and children, renewing her call for support to establish Tiffany’s Haven in memory of her sister, Tiffany Smith, who was murdered by her spouse.
Smith was 30 and a mother of four when she was stabbed 26 times on May 24, 2005.
For more than two decades, Ms Munnings has marked her sister’s death with candlelight vigils, domestic violence conferences and community outreach events, insisting the killing should drive action, not silence.
This year’s observance was held at First Holiness Church of God, where survivors, advocates, religious leaders and community members gathered for an evening of remembrance, awareness and encouragement. After the programme, attendees were served hot meals and refreshments, while children played on a bouncing castle.
Ms Munnings said the proposed facility would serve as a restoration centre for battered women and their children
who need refuge from abuse.
“Sometimes we can leave the relationship, but there’s nowhere for us to go,” she said. “That’s why Tiffany’s Haven is so important. It will be a place where women can come with their children for healing and restoration.”
Ms Munnings said she already has a structure in mind for the facility, but needs support to make it a reality.
“I’m praying that God sends destiny helpers — people who believe in making a difference,” she said. “Together, we can restore women and children.”
Recalling the day her sister was killed, Ms Munnings said she received a message shortly before 3pm telling her to go to the hospital.
“Shortly before 3pm, I got a message to go to the hospital,” she said. “I didn’t know what to think. When I got there, I learned that my sister had been murdered.”
“At first, I heard the ambulance siren and I thought, ‘They don’t use sirens for the dead,’ so I had hope,” Ms Munnings recalled. “But when I got there, it was silent. That’s when I learned it was my sister.”
She said the annual event is not only about remembrance, but about
warning women that abuse can be fatal.
“Today marks 21 years since I lost my sister to abuse,” she said.
“Instead of becoming bitter, I chose to become better — to enlighten and encourage others that domestic violence is
real, and you can die as a result.”
Her appeal comes as domestic violence remains a serious concern in The Bahamas. Police statistics show reported domestic violence cases declined by 29 percent, from 2,630
domestic-related incidents in 2024 to 1,859 in 2025. However, advocates warn the figures may not capture the full crisis because many victims remain silent.
Ms Munnings, who has also experienced domestic violence, said Tiffany’s
Haven would not only help women escape abuse, but also help children recover from violence in the home.
“Better children become better adults,” she said. “If we can restore them while their minds can still be transformed, we’ll have fewer people in jail, fewer in the grave, and a greater future for our families.” Domestic violence advocate Hilvana Cash praised Ms Munnings for consistently keeping the issue before the public.
“She has been consistent for years in bringing awareness to this issue,” Ms Cash said. “Domestic violence doesn’t only affect those directly involved — it affects children, families, co-workers and entire communities.” Religious minister Janet Gray, of First Holiness Church of God, also commended Ms Munnings’ work.
“Every year she comes here, she has my full support,” Gray said. “Domestic violence is a terrible thing, and too many women suffer in silence. They need to come forward so they can get help.”
Ms Munnings said her sister’s memory continues to drive her advocacy.
“If I can save just one woman, one year at a time, then Tiffany’s death is not in vain,” she said.
Pilots released from hospital after negative Ebola tests
By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter
pbailey@tribunemedia.net
TWO foreign nationals were released from Princess Margaret Hospital over the weekend after testing negative for Ebola following more than a week in quarantine prompted by their recent travel to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The men, one a British national and the other a French national, were placed in isolation at
Lynden Pindling International Airport on May 22 after presenting with fever-like symptoms during airport screening shortly after arriving in The Bahamas on a British Airways flight from Heathrow Airport. They were among 218 passengers and crew members aboard the aircraft.
The Ministry of Health confirmed in a press release on Saturday that the men had been released from the modular unit at Princess
Margaret Hospital after testing negative for the virus.
Health officials said there are no confirmed cases of Ebola in The Bahamas and that the overall risk to the public remains low. The National Surveillance Unit will continue to monitor the global situation.
The health scare prompted an emergency press conference last month and placed health officials on high alert after the men confirmed they had spent
about three weeks in Congo before travelling to Ethiopia and then on to The Bahamas.
The incident came amid growing international concern over an Ebola outbreak in parts of Africa that has killed hundreds of people.
Health officials said that although the pair had travelled to Congo, the areas they visited are not currently experiencing an Ebola outbreak or reporting active cases.
Officials said the two passengers, described as pilots conducting cargo flights, were not in contact with Ebola patients, did not attend funerals, and did not handle bodily fluids or
other materials of concern.
Although the men were initially found to have fevers, no additional symptoms were detected. The remaining passengers and crew were also screened and later released. The case unfolded as some countries tightened travel measures in response to the health threat.
According to international reports, the United States has temporarily restricted the entry of lawful permanent residents who have recently been in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda or South Sudan within the previous 21 days because of Ebola concerns.
FIELD TRAINING OFFICER
Last month, the Davis administration denied entry to travellers from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and South Sudan.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also advised Bahamians to avoid travel to those areas and to exercise caution when travelling to Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Angola, the Central African Republic, Ethiopia and Zambia. Ebola is a rare and often fatal illness caused by a group of viruses known as Orthoebolaviruses. Symptoms include fever, severe headache, fatigue, muscle and joint pain, sore throat and weakness. In severe cases, symptoms can progress to vomiting, diarrhoea and stomach pain.
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SHAVONNE Munnings points to a picture of her sister Tiffany Smith, who was killed 21 on years ago by her spouse, on her shirt.
Traumatised girlfriend speaks on fatal shooting
By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Chief Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net
THE girlfriend of a 23-year-old man shot and killed just feet from his Elizabeth home recalled ducking for cover as bullets rang out, only to discover moments later that she had been hit and her boyfriend fatally wounded.
The woman, who asked for her name to be withheld, said she now suffers nightmares and fears she may never be able to recover from the terrifying ordeal.
“I don’t think I could go in another relationship for as long as I live. I can’t take that,” she told The Tribune yesterday. “I don’t want to get attached to anybody anymore because that was my safe place.”
Her comments came three days after her boyfriend of five years, Aljaron Stubbs, was murdered.
Police were alerted to the double shooting shortly before 3pm Thursday near Antigua Street and Barbados Avenue.
Stubbs, who was out on bail for murder and murder conspiracy charges, had just left court that day when he and his girlfriend were heading home. She was on her lunch break at the time.
They spotted a car parked near their yard — the same vehicle seen earlier that morning — and decided to turn into a neighbour’s yard instead.
As they attempted to leave, gunmen in a lightcoloured Japanese vehicle pulled into the area and opened fire.
Stubbs’ girlfriend said she immediately ducked for cover and began praying.
“By the time as I get up and ask him ‘baby, you okay?’ That was it. He was then gone,” she said, not even realising that she had been grazed in the back.
The grieving woman said she struggles to sleep, often waking up in tears, and that she sometimes thinks about the attack during the day.
She has decided to take a break from work to cope with the trauma.
“In the morning, when it
first happened, I felt like I was going crazy,” she said.
“I know everybody gotta go one day, but it’s how you go. That’s the part that hurt me. If he had gone to bed and didn’t wake up, I would have felt better,” she said. Stubbs’ relatives are also struggling to come to terms with his death. Family members were inconsolable at the scene and had to be held back by police.
She admitted her boyfriend was no saint but said he had changed his life for the better.
“Even though he was trying to change, the police was still on him,” she said.
“Every other week, coming to lock him up and bothering him. Ain’t nobody’s perfect. Everybody’s innocent until proven guilty.”
Tribune records show that Stubbs was charged in 2023 with conspiracy to murder Detective Sergeant Raphael Miller and with the murder of Jorge Cuevas. He was also awaiting trial on attempted murder and firearm-related charges.
He had denied the allegations.
In the weeks before his death, Stubbs, who was unemployed, often spoke about opening a car wash business the next month and buying three bikes to rent out.
The couple was also planning to celebrate their sixth anniversary in October with a photo shoot and other activities.
The grieving woman said she is leaving her boyfriends’ attackers to God, saying every “dog got their day.”
She said she will deeply miss Stubbs, describing him as easygoing.
“Every now and then, like looking at our pictures and stuff like that, I try not to look at it, because it just made me break down and cry but, it’s really ain’t easy,” she said.
Police have not announced any arrests in connection with Stubbs’ murder.
His death brings the country’s murder count to 27 for the year, according to The Tribune’s records.
ALJARON STUBBS
The Tribune Limited
NULLIUS ADDICTUS JURARE IN VERBA MAGISTRI
“Being Bound to Swear to The Dogmas of No Master”
LEON E. H. DUPUCH,
Publisher/Editor 1903-1914
SIR ETIENNE DUPUCH, Kt., O.B.E., K.M., K.C.S.G., (Hon.) LL.D., D.Litt .
Publisher/Editor 1919-1972
Contributing Editor 1972-1991
RT HON EILEEN DUPUCH CARRON, C.M.G., M.S., B.A., LL.B.
Publisher/Editor 1972-
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The dream of homeownership
THERE is some simple arithmetic at the heart of one of the biggest costs people face each month.
Every month, one of the biggest bills to pay will for many be their rent or their mortgage – and those bills seem to have been getting bigger and bigger.
There has been much talk over the years of how to help people with their living expenses, but one of the most important factors in that has long gone under-addressed.
A new study by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has shown that the pace of expanding the housing inventory has been going more slowly, not faster.
In the 12 years to 2022, the inventory grew 1.5 times slower than in the previous decade, it reported.
That is despite the population of The Bahamas going up. In 2022, when this survey records data until, the population was 397,538 – now it is over 400,000. In 2010, the start of the survey period, it was 367,428. More people, but properties not keeping up the same pace.
When one also factors in the increasing tendency to turn some properties into AirBNB rentals rather than housing, it is little wonder that the simple law of supply and demand means that prices are going up significantly.
There are more factors too – for example, more than 40 percent of the nation’s housing stock was built more than 35 years ago. The years and wear and tear have meant some of those properties falling into disrepair.
There has also been an issue over numbers of vacant properties. The IDB noted there were more than 20,000 vacant properties in 2022, but the bank noted there were issues over bank foreclosures, AirBNBs and landlords simply having had enough of delinquent tenants.
The IDB warned that the number of dwellings increased by “an average of 1.2 percent per year between 2010 and 2022, while the population increased by an average of 1.1 percent per year”.
Two years ago, Keith Bell, the Minister of Housing and Land Reform, said The Bahamas was short by 12,000 housing units. It is, by the statistics, a problem that has crossed multiple administrations. It is also a problem that recurs elsewhere in the region – such as Trinidad and Tobago, or Barbados.
It is a situation which is a mix too –landlords who benefit from increased rents may be very content with the lack of competition. However, as the IDB report noted, and as The Tribune reported last week, “formal housing solutions are increasingly out of reach of low and middle income households”.
The dream of home ownership should not be simply that, a dream. It ought to be something that is a reasonable goal for Bahamians in all walks of life. You work hard, you put in the effort, and you can afford to put a roof over your head, to be able to afford your children’s needs, their education, to invest in their future.
There are steps this government is already taking with regard to VAT relief on first-time ownership, but this clearly is a bigger issue that needs to be a consistent focus of administration after administration, whichever colour shirts the party supporters are wearing.
The new government has the opportunity, having stopped the swinging pendulum of support and ensured a second successive term, to really lay down the foundations for consistent home building, especially in the affordable sector.
If we were 12,000 homes short last administration, how many homes will be built in this administration to remedy the issue?
We are very much in the early days of this second term. However, the statistics help to reinforce our understanding of the need, a need we already knew existed.
If we are to truly make a difference to people’s lives, it is an important place to start.
The future of humanity
EDITOR, The Tribune.
TEACHING high school math and science to students aged 12 to19 puts me in a unique position to shape the future. Inspiring the next generation to think critically about humanity’s trajectory is deeply intrinsic to my teaching philosophy. That intrinsic analytical propensity induces me to wonder about the future of humanity. In May 2026, the escalating conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran has emerged as the defining global event captivation the public. This geopolitical crisis is actively reshaping language and culture; for instance, a Brazilian labor leader recently declared that their union would “fight like an Iranian,” signaling how wartime rhetoric is permeating global social movements` Smartphones and social media have completely transformed human connection. For most people today, the internet is our main source of information, shopping, and entertainment. But this digital age is pushing us away from face-to-face interaction and deeper into the virtual world. Here in the Caribbean, the “scrubbing” dance perfectly captures this shift. Being in my early fifties, the idea of grinding intimately with a stranger feels absurd, but it’s second nature to the younger generation. Furthermore, the proliferation of artificial intelligence
threatens to erode cognitive development. Even individuals who rely entirely on digital tools now depend on AI to draft mundane tasks like lesson plans, a process that is vital for professional growth. By outsourcing this thinking, we risk cultivating a society that lacks intellectual vigor and critical reasoning skills. Ultimately, if we allow algorithms to compose our resumes, cover letters, and everyday communications, we sacrifice our own capacity for independent thought and intellectual agility. Aggressive U.S. hegemony in the Caribbean—driven by punitive tariffs, the strategic subversion of Venezuela, and the economic strangulation of Cuba—systematically dismantles the sovereignty of regional nations. Under Washington’s coercion, Caribbean governments are forced to compromise their national interests, as seen when external pressure compels them to expel vital Cuban medical brigades. This relentless economic and political intimidation directly degrades the regional quality of life, erodes collective security, and fractures regional unity. The consequences of this fragmentation are already playing out on the diplomatic stage. The unprecedented, bitter confrontation over renewing the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretary-General post is a
There is still time to make a difference
EDITOR, The Tribune.
IT is with a heavy heart, and an abiding sense of concern for the soul of our nation, that I reflect on the current trajectory of governance in The Bahamas. When I use the word governance, it is used in the inclusive sense to include the opposition because that is the reality of governance democratic society.
The erosion of core principles, once foundational to our collective aspirations, is not merely disconcerting but deeply disheartening. We appear to be adrift in a moral void, particularly within the very institutions and leadership echelons entrusted with safeguarding our national ethos. This profound departure from our founding ideals can only be attributed to those who demonstrate a disturbing indifference to the principles and arduous struggles upon which majority rule (1967) and independence (1973) were built.
My heart aches, and my spirit is wounded, for I am old enough to vividly recall the dawn of what was affectionately known as the “quiet revolution.” This was a movement forged through tireless effort and profound courage, from the mid-1950s through to the triumphant achievement of independence in 1973, all on behalf of the vast majority of Bahamians. The transition to full nationhood, intended to herald an era of collective advancement and shared prosperity, tragically veered off course, hijacked instead by the relentless surge of self-serving ambition.
The pervasive current of avarice, profound selfishness, and the early entrenched of the “all for me baby” mentality regrettably seized control of our national narrative and policy agenda.
This devastating divergence from the vision of our forebears meant that the sacred promise of majority rule and independence –luminous beacons of hope for countless citizens anticipating widespread economic betterment and true social mobility after the pivotal years of 1967 and 1973 – largely remained an illusion.
Consequently, a vast segment of our populace has found their socio-economic circumstances stagnant, if not actively deteriorating, leaving them no better off than in the pre-independence era.
This approach has cultivated a deep and bitter disillusionment which was projected and by colonial governance prior to independence. The present attitude of post majority rule and independence appears to mirror the governance of the colonial masters.
Alarmingly, like the colonial matters, there is a present substantial cohort entrusted with the public’s welfare and governance now seems to operate with a troubling disregard for ethical conduct, seemingly immune to the serious allegations of impropriety that has and continue to plague our public discourse and the forward progress of Bahamas.
A disturbing complacency has taken root, allowing individuals to cling to their positions despite glaring revelations of misconduct, particularly those that threaten our vital international relationships.
The noble ideal of selflessness, once the very cornerstone of public service, appears to have been shamefully supplanted by naked ambition and narrow self-interest. Integrity is routinely sacrificed at the altar of career advancement and superficially public relations that undermines the very essence of trust of the governed.
Instead of meticulously cultivating a reputation for excellence and unwavering probity on the global stage, the Bahamas perilously risk exporting an image of systemic corruption and institutional fragility. This has and still is fundamentally undermining the foundations of trust with the very nations upon whom our stability and prosperity significantly depend.
The tired, defensive retort that “others are equally corrupt” is not merely an insufficient justification for our ethical decay; it is a profound and cowardly abdication of responsibility. As a nation, we are compelled to confront the critical question: if not now, and if not by us, then when and how will the imperative for fundamental reform truly commence?
It is incumbent upon us to recognise the shifting
A delicate truth
EDITOR, The Tribune.
I HAD resolved not to comment on the recently concluded general elections until the roll out of the 20262027 National Budget and I plan on sticking to myself impose refrain from commenting on the same and offering a political autopsy.
direct symptom of this foreign interference.
What should be a routine bureaucratic renewal has instead exposed a fractured Caribbean Community. Incapable of maintaining a unified front, regional governments are increasingly turning inward, leaving the Caribbean exposed to further exploitation.
Experts warn that this relentless economic and political intimidation will directly degrade the regional quality of life. By choking off traditional trade partnerships and forcing compliance with foreign dictates, the current geopolitical landscape leaves Caribbean nations economically vulnerable and politically compromised. Instead of fostering a resilient trading bloc, the external pressure is rapidly eroding collective security and fracturing regional unity. In summary, the future is inherently defined by both risk and opportunity. Our success will be dictated by how we navigate these challenges and whether we prioritise genuine human relationships. Ultimately, material wealth serves only as a means to an end; it is human connection that provides life with profound purpose.
BRIAN ELLIS
PLUMMER Nassau, May 20, 2026.
With your leave, however, allow me to comment generally on assorted political matters until then. The short and simple explanation of the electoral debacle suffered by the badly defunct Free National Movement, led by the most clueless and hapless leader ever in the form of diminutive, the Hon Michael Clifton Pintard, is that all of them were outmaneuvered by the PLP and its cohesive machinery.
The leader of the doll house party admonished PLP Supporters To Stay Out Of FNM’s Business!! He seems to have forgotten that the antics and modus operandi by All politicians have a direct and lasting effect on All Bahamians, regardless of political leanings. So, in a nut shell, all Bahamians have an inherent right to get up into the business of all and sundry who call themselves ‘politicians’.
It is a delicate truth that, despite, his best efforts over the past several decade and mores, that the Honorable Michael Clifton Pintard (Marco City) has never been able to successfully challenge much less overcome the Most Hon Philip ‘Brave’ Davis, KC, MP In fact, he has suffered at least Four electoral floggings at the hands of Brother Davis.
Obviously Pintard is a pure glutton for political drumming at the hands of Brave. It is a delicate truth but Pintard,
sands of accountability, both domestically and internationally. There is a palpable and compelling emergence of renewed vigilance from key international partners, particularly from a significant global ally, signaling a far less tolerant stance towards malfeasance and a heightened expectation of transparency.
Concurrently, within our own civic and moral institutions, exemplified by the courageous new leadership within the Christian Council, there is a burgeoning, insistent demand for probity and ethical governance. The well-worn tactics of deflecting blame or invoking past grievances will no longer suffice; genuine, transformative change is not merely desirable, but an absolute and urgent necessity. True patriotism transcends mere rhetoric and empty declarations. It embodies a courageous, steadfast commitment to the nation’s long-term well-being, an unshakeable dedication to securing a dignified and prosperous future for generations yet to come. It demands a willingness to confront uncomfortable truths, to demand ethical leadership without compromise, and to champion integrity not for personal gain, but for the collective good of our beloved Bahamas.
Therefore, we must accept this defining moment for such unwavering dedication as a person to our shared destiny.
The outcomes of the election held on May 12, 2026, along with the notable contributions of various influential factions and allied supporters, unequivocally suggest that the current political establishment, widely perceived to prioritising its own interests, has maintained its hold on the reins of power. It is my fervent hope, prayer, and profound conviction that, in due course, history will deliver a definitive and impartial judgment on the legacy and impact of this particular group’s stewardship….Five years is sufficient time for them to clean up their act and be.an example of what responsible governance can become and be.…
DR DONALD M McCARTNEY
Freeport, Grand Bahama May 28, 2026.
a proven Failed leader simply needs to step back and read the tea leaves. His days as de jure leader of the FNM are rapidly coming to an ignoble close. Again, a delicate truth but someone has to tell him to get from behind the broken steering wheel of a vehicle careening out of control. It has been said that in politics one never say never. That may be a truism in most cases but in the case of Leader Pintard, I submit that he will never ascend the greasy pole in this lifetime. A delicate truth but so true.
Doctor Shanendon Cartwright, the elected Deputy of the doll house crew, poor fellow, says that he will rise, politically, from the ashes of defeat. He Did Not Say In Which Lifetime But, is he referring to this one? A delicate truth but the worse campaign ever ran by the FNM was the last one where political carpetbaggers and blood suckers held sway.
Doctor Sands’ political era is now, mercifully, finished just as is that of former Prime Minister Hubert A Minnis. The most incompetent National Chairman of Any party in this wonderful nation, hitherto, in my opinion, is Sands. He got beaten Three time up in Elizabeth (Lizzy, Oh My Lizzy!!) used to be his refrain, when Ingraham campaigned for him and opined that one day Sands would emerge as Leader of the defunct FNM and by some mythical abnormality, he would go on to become Prime Minister!
I have always held a special place for Brother Ingraham even if he was a political ingratiate towards the late and deeply lamented Sir Lynden Oscar Pindling.
Had it not been for God and the benign personality of Sir Lynden, Ingraham would have been a mere foot note in the annals of The Bahamas. Ingraham’s embrace drove the political nails into three coffins for the now defunct and on life support FNM. He ascended the stage in West End. The FNM was reduced to tatters. He then went on the stage down in Golden Isles (twice) and Brian Brown (who should have been appointed to the Senate seeing that he’s been campaigning down in Golden Isles for an eternity; spending all sorts of money and talking, politically, out of his head) lost twice. Ingraham then went up on the stage for the FNM at its massive rallies Only to see his adopted party go down in flames, again (Flight # 338). Some people just never seem to get it. When your role is over, simply exit the stage and let the show go on. Politicks Did Not work for Michael Clifton Pintard and it probably will not work in the future, A Delicate Truth but so true.
Cartwright may as well take a break and head off to the UK to complete his legal studies and get called to the Bar. Next general elections he may be able to salvage what is left of his political career. Now is not his time, and he was, in my opinion, involuntarily sent down to Saint James to be slaughtered and eaten alive by the PLP novice, the Hon Owen Wells. A delicate truth but so true. To God then, in all things, be the glory.
ORTLAND H BODIE, Jr Nassau, May 28, 2026.
Crown seeks 3 to 6 years in first judge-alone trial
By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net
THE prosecution recommended on Friday that a man convicted of dry humping his nine-year-old female cousin in their South Beach Drive home in 2014 be sentenced to three to six years in prison, while the defence called for a more lenient 12-month term.
The 28-year-old defendant, whose name is being withheld to protect the identity of the complainant, was found guilty last month of one count of indecent assault and not guilty of another count of indecent assault before Senior Justice Cheryl Grant-Thompson.
The matter marked the conclusion of the country’s first judge-alone trial.
Prosecutor Karine MacVean asked the court to impose a three-to-six-year prison sentence, citing the seriousness of the offence and the trauma experienced by the complainant.
Defence attorney Ryan Eve submitted that his client should face 12 months or less in prison for the offence. He said his client had already spent seven months and 14 days in custody by the time of his sentencing hearing.
The complainant testified that she woke up around 2am on April 27, 2014, to feel the accused dry humping her.
She recalled feeling the accused’s penis being thrust between her thighs. The complainant said she was scared during the ordeal. She said she knew about male genitalia at that age because of primary school family health classes.
She said the defendant hid in the bathroom before returning and allegedly fondling her little sister and rubbing his genitals on her buttocks while the fiveyear-old girl slept. The now 21-year-old complainant claimed her underwear and clothes were to the side during the assault, but were not completely off.
The defendant denied the allegations during his testimony and claimed he never left his mother’s bedroom that night. He claimed he would never do this to his young cousins and that his aunt threatened to kill him when the allegations were first made.
The defendant was acquitted of indecently assaulting the five-year-old girl.
He returns for sentencing on June 4.
US man fined over fake cash and police assault
By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter
pbailey@tribunemedia.net
AN American man was fined $3,450 on Friday for fraudulently spending movie prop money while visiting Nassau Cruise Port last week.
Zoquan Lorenzo Lee, 20, of Chicago, used three $100 US bills bearing the mark “Motion Picture Purposes” and defrauded Material Girl’s Boutique on Market Street of a silver Cartier wristwatch on May 27.
The defendant was allegedly found with $9,700 in fake US currency bearing the same mark.
Later that day, Lee allegedly resisted arrest by Sergeant 2740 Wilson at the cruise port around 3.25pm.
During the same incident, the defendant assaulted Police Constable
4763 Major and Police Constable 619 Williams and damaged a pair of RBPF trousers.
Lee pleaded guilty to possession of forged currency notes, uttering forged currency notes, conspiracy to commit fraud by false pretences, fraud by false pretences, assaulting a police officer and causing damage before Assistant Chief Magistrate Kara Turnquest-Deveaux.
Lee pleaded not guilty to an additional charge of possession of forged currency and resisting arrest. The charges against Lee’s 15-year-old male co-accused, whose name is being withheld because he is a minor, were withdrawn. Lee was fined a total of $3,450 or risks three months in prison.
Sergeant Vernon Pyfrom prosecuted the case.
Murder suspect gets two years for escaping
CULMER
from page one
proceedings against officers responsible for his custody.
When asked by Magistrate Serville why he missed a February 19 court date before the chief magistrate, Culmer said he was “getting closer to god” and that he was “staying out of sight, out of mind, so they wouldn’t say I is a public threat.”
Magistrate Serville told him that was of considerable concern at this stage.
Culmer pleaded guilty to escape from lawful custody after fleeing the South Street court complex while in custody around 3.30pm on October 2, 2025.
When asked why he fled, Culmer said it did not sit right with him to remain in prison for murder and two attempted murder charges he claimed he was innocent of.
While on the run, he claimed he had not seen his four children and was barely surviving.
Culmer asked the magistrate for mercy and claimed he was being railroaded over his pending murder charges.
He said he would rather be put to death than sit in prison for nothing.
Culmer also claimed the person arrested with him on Thursday was only giving him a ride that night. He said a Ms Pratt had nothing to do with it.
Magistrate Serville noted that significant government resources were expended trying to find him.
Culmer was sentenced to two years in prison for the escape. He has seven days to appeal the sentence.
Police said officers from the Internal Security Division, also known as SWAT, arrested Culmer and a 44-year-old man shortly
before midday last Thursday after intercepting a grey Nissan Note at the corner of Tonique Williams-Darling Highway and Premiers Avenue.
A search of the vehicle and its two occupants allegedly uncovered one pound and eight ounces of suspected marijuana in a black backpack, valued by police at $3,200.
Both men were arrested and cautioned over the alleged drug find. Police said the 44-year-old man was also cautioned in connection with harbouring a fugitive.
Culmer’s escape raised serious questions about security at the court complex. Police Commissioner Shanta Knowles confirmed in November that three police officers were under investigation in connection with the breach and said security protocols had been strengthened to
prevent another escape. By January, Commissioner Knowles said the three officers had been brought before a police tribunal over Culmer’s escape. One officer had been interdicted, and another was expected to face interdiction as the tribunal process progressed. The status of those disciplinary proceedings is unclear.
Culmer was arraigned in the Magistrate’s Court on February 16, 2024, on one count of murder and two counts of attempted murder after prosecutors accused him of opening fire from a vehicle at a group of people on January 31, 2024. A 39-year-old woman was killed in the shooting on Ragged Island Street. Carla Bain and Lorenzo Sands were also injured. Inspector Cordero Farrington prosecuted the escape case.
Court upholds 45-year sentence for Mackey Street murder
By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net
A MAN failed last month to overturn his 45-year prison sentence for a 2019 Mackey Street murder.
Dwayne Lodimus, 32, had his murder conviction upheld by Justices of Appeal Indra Charles, Bernard Turner and Gregory Hilton. Lodimus shot and killed Elroy “Skully” Burrows, 40, while he was near a pharmacy on Mackey Street shortly before 11am on May 19, 2019.
Sergeant Daniel Gabriel testified that while he was at a lodge hall on Wilton Street, he heard eight to ten gunshots.
Looking east, Sergeant Gabriel saw a man running from the murder scene while holding a
Man fined $10,000 over ammo
By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net
A MAN was fined $10,000 on Friday after admitting he had nine rounds of ammunition in his Porkfish Drive home last week.
gun. The officer saw the suspect enter a silver two-door Honda Accord through the window on Palm Beach Street. Despite the officer’s efforts to stop them, the suspects escaped. Lodimus was arrested on April 8, 2019, after he and his brother, Anton Lodimus, were stopped in the same vehicle in a Wendy’s parking lot at the Golden Gates Shopping Centre. A black Smith & Wesson 9mm pistol and 13 rounds of ammunition were recovered from the passenger seat of the vehicle.
Forensic evidence linked the gun recovered from the car to the murder.
Lodimus was convicted of the offence at the end of his trial before Justice Renae McKay on September 7, 2023. In his conviction appeal, Lodimus argued that the trial judge erred in rejecting his no-case submission because the identification evidence was weak and unreliable. The defence further claimed the trial judge failed to properly direct the jury on surveillance and identification evidence, and misdirected the jury about the search of the vehicle in which the firearm was recovered.
Sergeant Gabriel identified Dwayne Lodimus as the man who ran past him on the day of the murder during an identification parade on April 10, 2019.
Lodimus claimed the conviction was unsafe and unsatisfactory.
The Justices of Appeal found that the trial judge was correct to reject the no-case submission. They found the prosecution’s evidence was sound and that the trial judge properly directed the jury. While the justices acknowledged that Lodimus was identified after a brief observation by a stranger, they said there was substantial evidence linking him to the crime. For those reasons, they ruled that the conviction was neither unsafe nor unsatisfactory.
James Thomson represented Lodimus, while Darnelle Dorsette appeared for the prosecution.
After police breached the premises, they found eight .300 Blackout rounds and one .45 round in a black bag in the front room.
Cox pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of ammunition before Senior
Terrell Cox, 32, reportedly refused to open the door to police when they asked to enter his residence around 2am on May 28.
Magistrate Algernon Allen Jr. The charges against Cox’s co-accused, Latanya JeanJacques, 55, and Dexdria Sands, 30, were withdrawn.
Cox was ordered to pay a total fine of $10,000 or risk 12 months in prison.
Sergeant 2257 Forbes prosecuted the case.
Afreximbank advances credit approval for Abaco hotel project
By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net
A PROPOSED hotel development in The Bahamas has cleared the first stage of Afreximbank’s credit approval process, with a senior bank executive saying the project could advance to formal approval and public announcement soon.
Okechukwu Ihejirika, chief operating officer of Afreximbank’s Caribbean Office, said the project is still moving through the bank’s financing review process.
“There’s a hotel project that passed through our first level of credit approval, still very much ongoing. It’s going to be here in The Bahamas,” Mr Ihejirika said.
Although few details have been released publicly, Mr Ihejirika appeared to suggest the development will not be on New Providence.
When asked about the project’s location, he appeared to seek confirmation from reporters, asking, “Is it, you know, Abaco?”
After reporters responded affirmatively, he said: “It’s one of the private islands that's going to help attract more tourists here in The Bahamas and also help consolidate the values derivable from the tourism potential in the country.”
Mr Ihejirika declined to identify the developers involved or provide other details, saying discussions with the project’s promoters are still ongoing.
He said the proposal has advanced through the first stage of the bank’s approval process, with further due diligence and additional credit approvals still required.
“Depending on the amount, sometimes could be up to three levels. We've gotten the approval for the level one. We will take it to after, of course, the due diligence, technical due diligence, which is the next step. We'll be able to take it to the second level credit, and the third level credit is actually rapid.”
“Once the second level scales through, and then we'll be able to go into actual disbursement. So, I would say we're advancing pretty well. We hope that very soon we will be able to make the announcement that we are going ahead with that project.
The proposed hotel is among several
private-sector initiatives being pursued by Afreximbank in The Bahamas as the institution expands its investment footprint in the country.
Mr Ihejirika said the bank has become increasingly involved in government-backed infrastructure projects, but is also seeking opportunities with private-sector partners.
“The Bahamas alone,
last year we approved, signed a $200 million facility with the government to support infrastructure development. That shows the huge opportunities that are there on the government side,” he said.
“But as an institution, we don't only work with government. We also work with the private sector. That means we also have a few private sector led initiatives that we are also
engaging on.” He said the hotel project is separate from previously announced financing commitments.
“So, when we now look at what we have in the pipeline in the Bahamas, we're talking about about almost $500 million which is significant,” Mr Ihejirika said.
He spoke on the sidelines of the Afreximbank Roadshow 2026 at the Baha Mar Convention Centre on Friday.
In 2024, The Bahamas hosted Afreximbank’s annual meetings and the Afro-Caribbean Trade and Investment Forum.
The roadshow was designed to allow Afreximbank to engage directly with the Bahamian business community, raise awareness about the bank’s regional presence, and educate businesses about financing opportunities and services available through the
institution. Afreximbank has a $5bn financing limit for the Caribbean. Mr Ihejirika said that although Afreximbank has been active in the Caribbean for about two years and previously visited The Bahamas in 2024, the bank is still relatively new to the region and wants businesses to understand how they can access its support.
Afreximbank has deepened its relationship with The Bahamas since signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the government in 2023.
Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis said the partnership has already delivered financing support for key national priorities, including road infrastructure and a $30m facility through the Bahamas Development Bank aimed at increasing access to funding for small businesses.
“One of the key priorities for The Bahamas moving forward is the creation of even more pathways to opportunity for local entrepreneurs, especially small business owners. Economic growth must translate into broader economic participation, ensuring that more Bahamians have the chance to build businesses, create jobs, and share in the country’s progress,” he said.
“We have made some progress in this area, but
continuing to strengthen access to capital through institutions such as the Afreximbank is an important part of our ongoing efforts. This roadshow also reminds us of the importance of regional and international cooperation at a time when many economies are navigating uncertainty.”
Several major Afreximbank-backed initiatives are underway in The Bahamas, including a $40m facility for the Cat Island Infrastructure Company aimed at improving connectivity and development in the Family Islands. Representatives said the project is expected to be completed by August 2027. The first phase includes the installation of 94 miles of water mains, targeted for completion by January 2027, along with 50 miles of road paving and an additional 45 miles of road restoration in areas affected by the water infrastructure works. The bank also backed a $100m financing facility for Bahamas Striping Group to support business expansion, and a $200m framework agreement focused on developing climate-resilient and trade-enhancing infrastructure.
Bahamas Striping Group is currently carrying out road works spanning 63 miles in Exuma and 163 miles in Eleuthera.
PRIME Minister Philip ‘Brave’ Davis (centre) pictured with Okechukwu Ihejirika, chief operating officer of Afreximbank’s Caribbean Office, as The Bahamas govt seeks financing approval for a proposed hotel from Afreximbank. Minister of Finance Michael Halkitis, Minister of Energy, Utilities and Aviation Jobeth Coleby-Davis also pictured alomng with other govt and Afreximbank officials.
Photos: Nikia Charlton
PRIME Minister Philip ‘Brave’ Davis speaks during the Afreximbank Conference at the Baha Mar Convention Centre on Firday.
Vast scale of US DEA drug trafficking probe revealed
Two of the alleged senior members of the Georgia Drug Trafficking Organisation (DTO) are, according to an affidavit supporting trafficking and conspiracy charges recently brought against Gardiner, alleged to have conspired with the 58-year-old to export cocaine into the US through The Bahamas.
In the May 15 affidavit by a DEA special agent, the two men who allegedly conspired with Gardiner are identified only as co-conspirators
‘CC-1’ and ‘CC-2.’ But The Tribune can today identify the two men as the alleged leader of the Georgia DTO, Charles Dunn (CC-1), aka ‘Silk,’ and his key lieutenant, alleged drug trafficker Ernest Mordeau Deas, (CC-2), aka ‘Shorty,’ who allegedly met Gardiner in Nassau to discuss They are now facing sentences of up to life imprisonment in Atlanta. Both have denied the charges.
Three other Bahamians named in the May 14 affidavit by DEA Special Agent Michael Coleman are also named in the November 2024 indictment of former RBPF Curtis, his associate Sergeant Prince Albert Symonette, and others. The indictment accuses Bahamian officials, including members of law enforcement, of facilitating drug trafficking operations. Prosecutors allege that traffickers used The Bahamas as a transit point for smuggling large quantities of cocaine into the United States with the help of Bahamian officials.
One of those named is accused of being a maritime drug trafficker operating in
Nassau and Bimini Island, is alleged to have facilitated cocaine trafficking from The Bahamas into the US using ‘go-fast’ boats from Bimini to Miami. He is also alleged to have worked closely with one of two pilots indicted with Curtis, and named in the May 15 DEA Gardiner indictment.
According to special agent Coleman’s affidavit one of the pilots is alleged to have driven a DEA cooperating source (CS) and another accused to the meeting at the Bahamian Parliament Building where they allegedly met a politician identified only as ‘Politician-1,’ to discuss an upcoming shipment of 1,000-kilograms of cocaine.
According to the DEA affidavit, Colombian Luis Fernando Orozco-Toro, who is accused of being a drug trafficker in the Curtis indictment, knew Gardiner and is alleged to have told an undercover DEA confidential source, in a secretly videotaped meeting, that ‘Gardiner was currently building government buildings; and claimed that Gardiner was reportedly trying to keep his involvement below the radar of law enforcement.”
Last week, Finance Minister Michael Halkitis confirmed he had previously served as a director for Top Notch Builders after initially denying any involvement with the company when initially questioned by The Tribune.
FNM Opposition Leader Michael Pintard called for Halkitis’ resignation.
Gardiner is now under the jurisdiction of the US Attorneys, Southern District of New York (SDNY). There has been no word on upcoming court appearances.
By INSIGHT TEAM
THE alleged head of a US drug trafficking organisation accused of importing cocaine through The Bahamas with the assistance of Jonathan ‘Player’ Gardiner was living a life of luxury 30 miles outside Atlanta, Georgia, until his arrest on suspected drug trafficking charges two years ago.
Charles Dunn, also known as ‘Silk,’ is said to be the leader of the Georgia Drug Trafficking Organisation (DTO) named only as a co-conspirator, ‘CC1’, in a May 15 affidavit by a US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Special Agent, which implicates a high-ranking politician, known only as ‘Politician-1’, discussing a $30m narcotics shipment inside the Bahamas Parliament Building. Dunn’s alleged drug ring was referred to in court documents filed in the case of Bahamian Gardiner, who was arrested on May 12 after being rescued from a crashed plane off the coast of Florida by the US military. Gardiner, 58, was
alleged to be carrying a bag containing $30,000 in Bahamian currency that was labelled with the name of a Bahamian politician, ‘Politician-1’. The identity was redacted by US authorities. Since his arrest, details continue to emerge about those allegedly involved with a massive DEA trafficking investigation centring on The Bahamas and the US. Court documents indicate the DEA was using undercover confidential sources (CSs) on Bahamian soil, without the knowledge of the Bahamian government, police or defence force, for at least three years. On social media, Dunn, 57, has endorsements for
books he has written from rapper Master P ficking and an attack on a rival drug gang, he denies. The offences carry a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years and a
maximum sentence of life imprisonment. A woman believed to be Dunn’s wife, Leticia Evans Dunn, is also
In another twist, one of the other key figures in the alleged plot was another co-conspirator, ‘CC-2’, linked to Gardiner, who we can reveal as Ernest Mordeau Deas, aka ‘Shorty’, whose sentence for cocaine trafficking offences was commuted by former US President Barack Obama. Court records show Deas was subsequently placed on supervised release before his release from prison. Prosecutors now allege he returned to drug trafficking. Court documents say Deas and Gardiner were incarcerated at the same federal prison in Florida during 2007-08, while both were serving sentences related to drug trafficking and money laundering offences.
The Atlanta, Georgia, filings describe a drug ring that allegedly trafficked “massive” quantities of cocaine — as much as
100 kilograms at a time — across multiple states.
But it is Dunn’s alleged public image as a reformed offender that is among the most striking aspects of the case. Dunn has portrayed himself as a reformed ex-con. He was jailed for 30 years in Ohio, his home state, in 1992 at the age of 23 for running a drug trafficking operation.
A newspaper article reposted by Dunn on Instagram even asked whether his lengthy prison sentence made him America’s equivalent of Nelson Mandela, the South African anti-apartheid leader who spent 27 years in prison before becoming President. According to Dunn, upon his release after serving 24 years he went straight and became a motivational speaker who appeared on numerous local television programmes, where he was billed as a life coach who had gone from “prisoner to changemaker”. In an interview with the online programme Build Series, Dunn said
helping others learn to read and write in prison changed his outlook on life.
He said: “I realised you got to stop doing what you were taught to do to discover what you were born to do.” Since then Dunn has given numerous lectures, including to youth groups, and published a motivational memoir titled I Will Not Be Denied: Mastering The Changes.
In an Instagram video, he showcases his lavish home and tells viewers: “After all the pain I went through, 25 years of suffering … I wake up living like this because the God I serve is saying he gives you double for your trouble.
“People got to go to resorts to see this. I see this every day. Have an attitude of gratitude. Go through your suffering with grace and you’ll be blessed to wake up like this for the rest of your life too.”
Dunn’s follow-up book, the four-volume Sandpaper to Silk series, has been endorsed by rapper Master P, who promoted it in a video posted on Dunn’s Instagram account. Anthony Anderson also backed the book, saying in a promotional clip: “Hey everybody, go get From Sandpaper to Silk, it’s on its way to being a bestseller.”
But prosecutors say the transformation is an illusion and that Dunn “has not turned his life around”.
During a July 2023 bail hearing in Georgia, prosecutors argued that he was “still doing the same thing that he’s been doing, which is drug trafficking”.
The prosecution added: “We do believe that the defendant is a sophisticated and prolific drug trafficker operating in Georgia. That is how he funds his lifestyle.”
The judge denied him bail and said that Dunn’s earlier prison sentence, of which he served more than 20 years, “did not deter you in the least”.
Magistrate Judge Christopher Bly said: “Within a year or so of finishing the supervised release, best I can tell if I’m doing the math right, within a year or so of finishing supervised release you’re charged in Fulton County and then within another two years you’re charged in the current case.”
According to the indictment against Dunn, when investigators raided his home they found evidence of a lifestyle far beyond that of a motivational speaker. Items seized in the 2023 raid included a Lamborghini valued at about $250,000, a Cadillac Escalade worth approximately $125,000 and a 2019 Mercedes-Benz AMG GT valued at around $140,000.
Investigators also seized jewellery including a diamond-encrusted Rolex Datejust 41 containing 25 carats of diamonds, valued at approximately $29,000; a Rolex Datejust 36mm stainless steel watch valued at about $15,000; a gold Versace military-style dog tag; a gold diamond Cuban bracelet; a 10k yellow gold Gucci link diamond
bracelet worth about $3,900; a 14k yellow gold diamond ring; and a 19k two-tone diamond ring.
Among the items recovered, prosecutors say, were five pounds of marijuana, half a kilogramme of cocaine, heroin, THC gummies, fentanyl, methamphetamine, 14 mobile phones and other electronic devices. A handwritten note found in Dunn’s main bedroom, dated June 27, 2023, stated: “I have $10 million.” It is not known who wrote the note.
During the raid, investigators also seized four bank accounts containing a combined $653,000.
Authorities say they recovered approximately $120,000 in cash from Dunn’s property and another $270,000 from the property of one of his associates.
Court documents also state that investigators recovered a Smith & Wesson M&P M2.0 .45 calibre pistol. Dunn and Deas both deny the charges and are awaiting trial. Lawyers for Dunn did not return calls.
also seized $120,000 in cash and $546,000 from
accounts, both
ITEMS seized at Dunn’s $1.4 million, eight-bedroom, waterfront mansion in Lafayette, Georgia, include jewellery, 5lbs of marijuana, half a kilogram of cocaine, THC gummies, 14 mobile phones and other electronic devices, heroin, methamphetamine, and fentanyl.
POLICE
Dunn’s bank
alleged to be proceeds of crime.
COURT documents state that police found one .45 Smith & Wesson M2.0 firearm and two cars, a 2019 Mercedes-Benz AMG GT, worth around $140,000 and a $250,00 Lamborghini.
DUNN’S $1.4 million, eight-bedroom, waterfront mansion in Lafayette, Georgia