PS placed on $200,000 bail

…SOCU Head says money laundering, tax evasion investigations being done 

Head of the Special Organised Crime Unit Sydney James on Friday confirmed that Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of the Presidency, Omar Shariff, is being investigated for money laundering and tax evasion since it was discovered that he has several billions of dollars in a number of accounts at local banks.

Permanent Secretary Omar Shariff
Permanent Secretary Omar Shariff

James told Guyana Times that the public official was arrested on Thursday and was released on $200,000 station bail following the intervention of his lawyer, Sanjeev Datadin.
However, when questioned about the inference by the lawyer that the matter was more or less “personal”, James stated: “There is nothing personal when it comes to money laundering and tax evasion.”
The Head of SOCU noted that while he cannot reveal details about the probe, he reiterated that the matter is being investigated.
Shariff, who is a former senior member of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) and a former head of that party’s youth arm, the Progressive Youth Organisation (PYO), was arrested by for questioning in relation to a multimillion-dollar financial irregularity.
In a letter to Shariff, Minister of State Joseph Harmon requested that he should proceed on his annual leave from July 1, 2016, to enable him to fully cooperate with the investigation. In the meantime, Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Communities Ministry Abena Moore will take up the role of Acting Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of The Presidency (MOTP).
However, it was reported that the permanent secretary had over $10B in several accounts at local banks which was deposited over a five-year period.
Sharriff claimed that he rakes in almost $100 million a year from his business for the past seven years but SOCU is not buying into it. In addition, there were no evidence that taxes were paid for the past eight years.
Attorney Datadin when contacted had stated that the issue is more or less personal and has to do with his client not filing his income tax returns for a number of years. He further explained that his client and the relevant authorities have been in discussions in resolving the matter.
He also noted that his client was not involved in any corruption, as it is perceived, following the statement issued by the MOTP about him being sent on leave. (Bhisham Mohamed)