Trinidad man granted bail in $40,000 fraud case by High Court

Trinidad and Tobago: A male suspect who was arrested in the case of fraud was presented in the high court for a hearing on Thursday, 15th August. The accused was released against the sum amount of 80 thousand dollars after acceptance of the bail application.

The suspect is facing the allegation of obtaining 40 thousand dollars by false pretenses. The individual is mentioned as a 53-year-old man in police reports after the identification. The man in his early fifties is named Ernest Todd, as per his documents.

The accused of fraud, Ernest Todd, is disclosed as a resident of the Dow Village, California in Trinidad. The authorities laid the man with charges of uttering a forged document and gaining the amount of 40 thousand dollars with the use of a forged document.

The information on the fraud case in Trinidad was collected through the police department. As per the collected details, fraud took place against a victim from Caroni (1975) Limited. The victim was an occupier of agricultural land stretched around two acres for the past twenty years.

The victim told the police department in his statement that he wanted to register himself as the owner of the land officially, for which he met with the suspect. The victim got assurance from the man that he knew someone who can easily process his requirement.

It is mentioned that the suspect, in order to help the victim with his document works, allegedly produced a certificate. The certificate was in the name of the victim and was dated back to January 2000.

The certificate was having some reference numbers and a signature to make it look like real and officially issued. The victim paid the suspect 40 thousand dollars in total for the work and accepted the certificate, thinking it being a genuine document.

Reportedly, it was later discovered that the document provided by the suspect was fraudulent. After finding the reality, the victim tried to contact the suspect but failed to reach him. Subsequently, the victim arrived at the police department for help and registered a complaint.

In response to the complaint, the fraud case was registered by the police unit in the region of Trinidad, and the investigation was launched. The officers of the Fraud Squad took action in the matter and arrested the suspected man to process the laid allegations against him.

The operation to find and arrest the man was coordinated by W-Senior Superintendent Phillips and Superintendent Lutchman under the leadership of Cpl Ag Liverpool. The male suspect was apprehended by the officers in the Couva district on Wednesday, 14 August.

Eventually, the suspect was charged in connection with the fraud case on the same day by Cpl Ag Hernandez of the Fraud Squad. The man was scheduled for the trials in court where he was presented in front of Shabiki Cazabon, Master of the High Court, who heard his case.

The bail was granted by the master of the high court for a surety of 80 thousand dollars. The suspect is also ordered to report to the Couva Police Station once a week between the hours of 06:00 am to 06:00 pm. The next date of appearance is scheduled for 19 September.