Govt. Minister sues Central Bank over failure to probe suspected money laundering

Jan 01, 2020 News

By Feona Morrison

In a $90M lawsuit filed at the Victoria Law Courts in Georgetown, Minister of Communities Ronald Bulkan is accusing the Bank of Guyana of failing to probe the unauthorised deposit of $82,068,617 into his company’s, Precision Woodworking Limited bank account being held at Republic Bank.

Minister of Communities: Ronald Bulkan

Minister Bulkan and his brother Rustum Bulkan, both shareholders in the company are the only authorised signatories to the company’s bank account.
In June 2011, Precision Woodworking Limited was placed into receivership by Republic Bank. In the lawsuit filed by their lawyers, Patrice Henry and Maxwell Edwards, Governor of Bank of Guyana, Dr. Gobind Ganga and Bank of Guyana have been listed as the first and second named defendants jointly and severally.
In a Statement of Claim, the brothers said that on June 16, 2011, “an unauthorised, disclaimed, suspicious and unlawful deposit” of $82, 068,617, was made into the company’s Republic Bank account #355-733-8. Concerned about the deposit, the brothers said between 2013 and 2017, they wrote to Dr. Ganga, Republic Bank, Minister of Finance Winston Jordan and Attorney General Basil Williams as it relates to the unauthorized and suspicious deposit with the hope of an investigation being launched.
Minister Bulkan and his brother said they are gravely concerned that the deposit was a breach of the Anti-money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Act by an individual identifiable by name. On January 25, 2018, in an action against Republic Bank, the Receiver, they were able, for the first time, to validate their grave suspicions and obtained confirmation about the fact, and existence of the deposit through a court order for Discovery.
“The Discovery Statement of Republic Bank showed that the deposit in fact existed, and was in fact made on June 17, 2011,” the brothers added.
“Both defendants continue to arbitrarily and whimsically deny the deposit being made, and dismissively discounted [our] suspici

Governor of Bank of Guyana: Gobind Ganga

on of criminally without any suggestion of any intention to take such action, including but not limited to a face-to-face meeting with [us]having particular regard to the very high governmental status of [Minister Bulkan].”
They said that by these acts, the defendants intended to mislead, deceive, induce and tricked into believing that the deposit was not made for them to abandon their relentless good faith pursuit of an investigation into the truth about this matter.
Furthermore, they say that they have been induced by the defendants repeated, false and in bad faith, denials or recklessly not caring whether their denials were true and factual, or not, into a belief, and entertaining of some doubt about the veracity of the very serious imputations of criminality against Republic Bank, probably the largest commercial bank in Guyana, tending to an appearance that they are not only mischievous, but malicious.
The brothers argue that the Bank of Guyana must have appreciated that its knowingly false or reckless denials were likely to be believed, and their complaints and assertions about money laundering dismissed. In this regard, Minister Bulkan said that both he and his brother as well as the defendants are acutely aware of the international financial jeopardy that Guyana endured as a result of the Financial Action Task Force blacklisting Guyana prior to 2015, and of government’s zero tolerance for money laundering.
They also say that they are well aware of the draconian and ruinous effects of the penalties of fines ranging from $220M to $520M and or imprisonment prescribed by the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering of Financing of Terrorism Act.
Hence, their efforts to have the unauthorised deposit investigated. The Minister and his brother further argue that Dr. Ganga’s misfeasance in public office has undermined and is likely to continue to undermine local, public, international and regional confidence in the regulation, supervision and administration of the financing/banking institutions in Guyana.
In the circumstances, they are suing Dr. Ganga for negligence, deceit, misfeasance in public office for which they are seeking in excess of $10M each in damages.
They are also suing the Bank of Guyana for breach of statutory duty and are seeking in excess of $50M in damages. They are also asking the court to award them exemplary damages for the potential harm, distress and unease caused by Dr. Ganga’s action. The brother are also seeking substantial costs and further or other order as the court deems just.

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