At the end of last year, an indictment filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York alleged that multiple Bahamian citizens, including a senior police officer, a police sergeant, and a defence force officer, were complicit in drug trafficking and related crimes that dated back to at least May 2021, a time period which precedes the current government’s term in office.
From the moment the indictment was unveiled, the Prime Minister and his government have treated the allegations with the utmost seriousness and urgency, and chose not to wait for what may be a lengthy legal process to play out before taking action. In the span of just a few months, the Prime Minister has received and accepted the resignation of the Police Commissioner, appointed a new commissioner with a mandate for reform, and developed and passed groundbreaking reforms in Parliament, including the establishment of new whistleblower protections and legislation enabling a new independent investigations commission, so that Bahamians will no longer need to rely on the police to investigate allegations of police misconduct.
In addition, the Prime Minister has met on multiple occasion with US officials to discuss these matters and to express the government’s ongoing commitment to cooperation. Within 24 hours of learning of the indictment, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs formally requested that US Embassy officials in The Bahamas provide assistance contacting the Department of Justice in order to identify the unnamed senior Bahamian official in the indictment. The US Embassy advised at that time, and has since confirmed, that as a matter of practice they do not comment on ongoing investigations and judicial processes.
Regarding the Prime Minister’s recent observation that the US case appears to rely heavily on actions in response to US government agents or informants, that is not a matter in controversy – it is clear from the text of the indictment itself.
Despite stiff competition from his FNM colleagues, Duane Sands frequently finds himself winning the Most Desperate Award, and today is no different.
The US indictment alleges criminal activity stretching back to the time when the FNM formed the government, yet no one can recall any steps he or his FNM colleagues took to substantively address concerns about wrongdoing in the security forces.
Today, as on so many other days, Sands chooses fake outrage instead of a sincere determination to collaborate on solutions for the country’s most difficult challenges.