Beautiful Virgin Islands

Sunday, Jul 27, 2025

0:00
0:00

We have found Hon Fahie ‘guilty without hearing a word from him’- VI Lawyer

Local attorney Richard G. Rowe has pointed to the double standard and insularity regarding the condemnation of former Premier Andrew A. Fahie (R1) and others by persons in the Virgin Islands.

According to Mr Rowe, persons were willing to give a free pass to the United Kingdom (UK) lawyers working in the Virgin Islands (VI) for the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) without being called to the bar and not having a work permit.

Hon Fahie was arrested on April 28, 2022, in Miami on drug and money laundering charges based on an affidavits by an undercover Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agent.

He has since been stripped of his title of Premier.

Local attorney Richard G. Rowe has pointed to the double standard and insularity regarding the condemnation of former Premier Andrew A. Fahie (R1) and other persons in the Virgin Islands by persons in the Virgin Islands but were wiling to give a free pass to the United Kingdom (UK) lawyers working in the Virgin Islands (VI) for the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) without being called to the bar and not having a work permit.


Never seen a parent abandon her child on criminal charges- Rowe


“We have a premier, an ex-premier, who is charged for alleged offences, and it appears certainly, contrary to the rule of law, that we have all found him guilty already without having heard a word from him,” Mr Rowe pointed out while a guest of the radio show PSI TV with host Kenneth G. Gladstone on May 16, 2022.

Mr Rowe added that he has been practising law since 1979, mainly in the criminal courts, and he can’t recall any mother who has abandoned her child because that child was charged with a criminal offence.

“But here we are, purportedly under the rule of law, on the basis of solely an affidavits of an informant.”

Who to trust?


Meanwhile, Mr Rowe says he views even the DEA with “great suspicion’ due to past experiences.

According to the veteran attorney, he was approached by DEA agents while practicing law in Jamaica who asked him to represent certain alleged drug dealers on the condition that “they [DEA agents] must receive a part of my pay and that I cannot exercise all the rights for that person charged. In other words, they must be found guilty.”

Staff of Premier’s Office ‘condemned as criminals’


He said similarly he has noted that staff of the Premier’s Office, particularly the Permanent Secretary, have already been condemned as criminals.

Governor John J. Rankin, CMG announced on May 12, 2022, that a criminal investigation into the conduct of the Premier’s Office has been launched.

He said the investigation was launched over the alleged obstruction of the Director of the Internal Audit Department in respect of her audit of the COVID-19 Assistance Programmes, as stated in the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) Report.

As a result, the Permanent Secretary was sent on leave.

“So I look with great suspicion…when anyone under the pay of an agency will make allegations which are yet to be proved as true that we have, under this rule of law, condemned his office and his staff, the Permanent Secretary, as if she is a criminal, to a criminal investigation and put on leave when it is not a crime,” Mr Rowe said.

CoI has painted local leaders as criminals- Rowe


He also opined that the CoI report has "overtly painted" local leaders like Myron V. Walwyn and Hon Julian Fraser RA (R3), as criminals.

Based on the recommendation of the CoI Report, the Governor has instructed criminal investigations into the ESHS Wall Project, which was done during the tenure of former Education Minister Mr Walwyn and the Sea Cows Bay Harbour Project, which was during the tenure of former Works Minister Hon Fraser.

According to Mr Rowe, the evidence so far, which includes engineering documents, shows there was no criminality involved in the projects.

Governor John J. Rankin CMG, left, along with two CoI lawyers, Andrew King, centre, and Bilal M. Rawat, right, who were accused of practising law in the territory while not being called to the BVI Bar, a violation of the Legal Professions Act 2015.


Double-standards?


Meanwhile, three CoI Lawyers were accused of practicing law in the Virgin Islands (VI) for some five months before filing an application to be called to be the BVI Bar.

Attorney General, Hon Dawn J. Smith has said, “the law is clear,” and that the three lawyers “should be admitted to practice in the VI if they are to perform duties as counsel and solicitors to the CoI established under the Commission of Inquiry Act.”

On November 22, 2021; however, the United Kingdom House of Commons sought to shield the Commissioner of Inquiry (CoI) Attorneys, the Commissioner himself and the local Governor John J. Rankin, CMG from paying any legal fees out of pocket if they are sued over the CoI.

In the VI, some residents staged a small protest claiming that the then Speaker Julian Willock must pay out of pocket as a British Judge Adrian Jack ordered amidst controversy.

Mr Willock had filed an injunction against the CoI lawyers but subsequently discontinued it.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
×