Beautiful Virgin Islands

Saturday, Oct 18, 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
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
Bessent Accuses China of Dragging Down Global Economy Amid New Trade Curbs
U.S. Revokes Visas of Foreign Nationals Who ‘Celebrated’ Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
DJI Loses Appeal to Remove Pentagon’s ‘Chinese Military Company’ Label
EU Deploys New Biometric Entry/Exit System: What Non-EU Travelers Must Know
Australian Prime Minister’s Private Number Exposed Through AI Contact Scraper
Ex-Microsoft Engineer Confirms Famous Windows XP Key Was Leaked Corporate License, Not a Hack
China’s lesson for the US: it takes more than chips to win the AI race
Australia Faces Demographic Risk as Fertility Falls to Record Low
California County Reinstates Mask Mandate in Health Facilities as Respiratory Illness Risk Rises
Israel and Hamas Agree to First Phase of Trump-Brokered Gaza Truce, Hostages to Be Freed
French Political Turmoil Elevates Marine Le Pen as Rassemblement National Poised for Power
China Unveils Sweeping Rare Earth Export Controls to Shield ‘National Security’
The Davos Set in Decline: Why the World Economic Forum’s Power Must Be Challenged
France: Less Than a Month After His Appointment, the New French Prime Minister Resigns
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Sarah Mullally Becomes First Woman Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
US Prosecutors Gained Legal Approval to Hack Telegram Servers
Macron Faces Intensifying Pressure to Resign or Trigger New Elections Amid France’s Political Turmoil
×