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On Thursday, both Peter Chin and Robert Chin, the main principals of Alliance Investment Management Limited (AIML) and Alliance Finance Limited (AFL) had the 17 charges made against them by the Financial Investigation Division (FID)  thrown out by Chief Judge of the Parish Courts, Chester Crooks.

These charges damaged their reputation and crippled their businesses forcing Alliance to be sold to Sagicor. Group Jamaica for an undisclosed sum.

It turns out the Chin brothers reported the transactions in question and no criminal intent was found. What is clear here is the FID bungled this case and was unable to provide sufficient evidence to substantiate its claims.

Chief Judge of the Parish Courts Chester Crooks’s decision has vindicated the Chin brothers with many expressing outrage at how their lives were irreparably damaged and also blaming both regulators the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) and the Financial Services Commission (FSC) for being complicit and culpable here.

However, it must be pointed out that both the BOJ and the FSC must abide by the law. With the FID charging Alliance and the Chin brothers with financial crimes, they both had to move hastily to protect the public from what were deemed criminal enterprises.

This has not assuaged the ire of many Jamaicans and those in the business community.

Many are pointing the finger at the BOJ for a number of perceived mishandling including getting the recent inflation calculations wrong, reticence in reigning in the banks with fees, moving too slowly to address the ATMs situation in the country, not being definitive enough on the SSL fraud case and now putting the Chin brothers through hell by prematurely suspending the Alliance licences.

The BOJ is always tempered in its approach and refrains from making hasty declarations.

Some are now questioning the Governor of the BOJ’s decision to shut down AFL’s licences less than two hours after the FID announced the charges. Some say this was a co-ordinated effort by the FID, FSC and BOJ who should now collectively answer for this egregious error that has imperilled the Chin brothers.

Yesterday the FID remained resolute insisting it remains committed to combating financial crimes in light of the recent Alliance case.

It sought to give an explanation as to why it proceeded with the criminal charges and made it clear that it had been investigating Alliance since 2018. It was brought to Our Today’s attention that a senior financial officer inside Alliance had alerted attention and that there was reason to believe there were breaches of multiple financial legislations. This in turn was turned over to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

A senior official close to the Alliance case speaking under condition of anonymity told Our Today, “Everyone is outraged and is quick to paint the FID, BOJ and the FSC as the bad guys here who had it in for the Chins. People seem to forget that serious offences were committed here. Let’s not get it twisted, AFL and the Chins admitted to a total of 36 counts, 28 under the Bank of Jamaica Act and 8 under the Banking Services Act.

“Judge Chester Crooks decision has not totally absolved them. Let’s not forget there is still a criminal forfeiture investigation against AFL and how it benefited from the offences. This is still before the Supreme Court.”

Maybe so, but this case against Alliance and the Chins has not gone down well with many Jamaicans who feel the brothers were maligned and thrown onto the pyre by the state apparatus.

The fact remains that the Chins were charged at 5.30 pm on Thursday, December 3rd, 2021. By 7.00 pm that evening, the FSC sent them letters and by 8.00 am the following morning the BOJ was at their door.

It’s not a good look and this was conducted too hastily.

Perhaps it would have been prudent for the BOJ to call in Peter and Robert Chin to explain why they were charged by the FID and hear their side of events.

 Decisive moves could have been made by the regulators once they were convicted. There was always the chance that they could be found innocent. Now they need a rag to wipe the egg off their faces.

What happened to the Chin brothers could happen to anyone in the financial and business sector for that matter.

This is a salutary lesson and it should never be repeated. The FID will have to be more vigilant henceforth. 

Lives and reputations should not be smashed in a cavalier fashion. 

The Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ) and the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce (JCC) are yet to give their thoughts on this matter. They need to do so sooner rather than later because they must assure their members and the wider business community that they cannot be frog-marched to jail on a whim or spurious allegations.

There must be consequences here.  Someone needs to step up, demonstrate character, apologise and make amends with the Chins. This is where talk of reparations should really take place!

People have naturally drawn comparisons with the SSL fiasco where Usain Bolt and others had their accounts there raided. Those account holders still haven’t had their missing funds fully addressed. 

It has been pointed out that the SSL situation is speedily moving to a conclusion, far quicker than the Alliance case.

The investigations into Alliance began as early as 2018 with charges made in 2021, whereas the SSL case was sent to the DPP in late 2023 only ten months after the collapse of that securities dealer investment house.

DPP Paula Llewellyn’s prosecutors are awaiting some additional information before proceeding further with a possible ruling.