Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Oct 28, 2025

Former commissioner Matthews refutes claims made by HOA speaker alleging hiring of regional criminals after 2017 hurricanes

Former commissioner Matthews refutes claims made by HOA speaker alleging hiring of regional criminals after 2017 hurricanes

The recent statement made by Speaker of the House of Assembly Julian Willock which alleges that the former Commissioner of Police Michael Matthews hired criminals from across the region to assist the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force following the 2017 hurricanes, is being labelled as false and damaging.

Former Commissioner Matthews responded to the claims made in Willock’s Position Statement which was submitted to the Commission of Inquiry (COI).

Paragraph 20 of Willock’s statement read “immediately after hurricanes Irma and Maria the Commissioner of Police hired a number of foreign nationals as police officers without doing the appropriate background checks whatsoever, in fact it is extremely likely that he would have hired persons that were well known criminals elsewhere in the region.”

Inaccurate, false, fabricated


Matthews said the paragraph was brought to his attention and felt it was best to pen a letter to the Commissioner of Inquiry Sir Gary Hickinbottom to present an accurate understanding to the COI of what exactly occurred.

He said, “This statement is false, inaccurate and in my view defamatory towards myself as the Commissioner of Police at the relevant time highlighted. To my knowledge the Hon. Speaker was not part of the Government of the BVI at that time, nor present in any meetings where security decisions were agreed, including the decision to seek assistance from external police forces.”

“The statement made by the Hon. Speaker is pure fabrication, and certainly is clearly not based upon any knowledge of the subject that he seeks to use as an example. His baseless allegations are an affront to all of the hard-working officers that supported the BVl at a time of exceptional need,” he further said.

All the appropriate channels utilized for unarmed officers


Matthews assured Sir Hickinbottom that all the appropriate measures were taken following the devastation that was caused to the territory by the hurricanes, which resulted in only 40 percent of his force being active.

He said, “With operational responsibility for security at the time, I immediately recommended to the Governor, Mr. Gus Jaspert that we invoke ‘mutual aide’ procedures from the United Kingdom to urgently increase policing resources within the territory. This was discussed and agreed with the then Premier, Dr Orlando Smith and those BVI Government Ministers available at the time.”

“An approach was made to the UK Home Office via the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and agreement reached with National Police Chiefs Council to provide unarmed uniformed officers to the territory, to supplement the RVIPF. All UK officers are vetted on appointment to their relevant UK force, and every officer deployed was selected by the Chief Constable in charge of the force that they were seconded from,” Matthews further explained.

Protocols also followed to acquire armed officers


The former top cop also said that similar measures were taken to acquire armed police officers, who had to be obtained from other UK Overseas Territories.

“Using the existing mutual aid Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) agreed with the other UK Overseas Territories Police Commissioners, I was able to source highly trained firearms response officers from the Bermuda Police Service and the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service,” Matthews stated.

He added, “I am aware that both Bermuda and Cayman forces have vetting procedures in place as part of their normal recruitment policies as well as additional vetting requirements for firearms officers.”

Matthews said that it would have been reckless and irresponsible if he would have attempted to supplement policing and security in the BVI with anyone else other than existing experienced officers from other affiliated jurisdictions.

He said all due diligence was undertaken to ensure the safety and security of the residents of the British Virgin Islands.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Elon Musk Unveils Grokipedia: An AI-Driven Alternative to Wikipedia
Saudi Arabia Unveils Vision for First-Ever "Sky Stadium" Suspended Over Desert Floor
Amazon Announces 14 000 Corporate Job Cuts as AI Investment Accelerates
UK Shop Prices Fall for First Time Since March, Food Leads the Decline
London Stock Exchange Group ADR (LNSTY) Earns Zacks Rank #1 Upgrade on Rising Earnings Outlook
Soap legend Tony Adams, long-time star of Crossroads, dies at 84
Rachel Reeves Signals Tax Increases Ahead of November Budget Amid £20-50 Billion Fiscal Gap
NatWest Past Gains of 314% Spotlight Opportunity — But Some Key Risks Remain
UK Launches ‘Golden Age’ of Nuclear with £38 Billion Sizewell C Approval
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
Philippines’ Taal Volcano Erupts Overnight with 2.4 km Ash Plume
Albania’s Virtual AI 'Minister' Diella Set to 'Birth' Eighty-Three Digital Assistants for MPs
Tesla Unveils Vision for Optimus V3 as ‘Biggest Product of All Time’, Including Surgical Capabilities
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
Convicted Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed by UK Prison Service Arrested in London
United States and China Begin Constructive Trade Negotiations Ahead of Trump–Xi Summit
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro over Drug-Trafficking Allegations
Miss USA Crowns Nebraska’s Audrey Eckert Amid Leadership Overhaul
‘I Am Not Done’: Kamala Harris Signals Possible 2028 White House Run
NBA Faces Integrity Crisis After Mass Arrests in Gambling Scandal
Swift Heist at the Louvre Sees Eight French Crown Jewels Stolen in Under Seven Minutes
U.S. Halts Trade Talks with Canada After Ontario Ad Using Reagan Voice Triggers Diplomatic Fallout
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
China and Russia Deploy Seductive Espionage Networks to Infiltrate U.S. Tech Sector
Apple’s ‘iPhone Air’ Collapses After One Month — Another Major Misstep for the Tech Giant
Graham Potter Begins New Chapter as Sweden Head Coach on Short-Term Deal
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa Alleges Poison Plot via Chocolate and Jam
Lakestar to Halt External Fundraising as Investor in Revolut and Spotify
U.S. Innovation Ranking Under Scrutiny as China Leads Output Outputs but Ranks 10th
Three Men Arrested in London on Suspicion of Spying for Russia
Porsche Reverses EV Strategy as New CEO Bets on Petrol and Hybrids
Singapore’s Prime Minister Warns of ‘Messy’ Transition to Post-American Global Order
Andreessen Horowitz Sets Sights on Ten-Billion-Dollar Fund for Tech Surge
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
×