Appeal Court overturns conviction and sentence of Deeds Registrar

Apr 27, 2021 News

Kaieteur News – The Appeal Court yesterday overturned the conviction and sentence of Registrar of the Deeds Registry, Azeena Baksh.

Registrar of the Deeds Registry, Azeena Baksh.

Last year, Baksh was found guilty by City Magistrate, Leron Daly, for obtaining over $4.5M from the State by false pretence. She was spared jail time but ordered to reimburse the State $4,534,480.
She had however expressed her dissatisfaction with the ruling and had turned to the Appeal Court asking that the decision of Magistrate Daly, “be wholly reversed, set aside and/or discharged.”
Magistrate Daly, in her ruling, had found that there was sufficient evidence against Baksh. According to the particulars of the charge, Baksh, while being a member of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) between May 1, 2014 and January 31, 2017, with intent to defraud, caused or procured valuable securities to the sum of $4,534,480 to be delivered to her Bank of Nova Scotia Account #281469; or to her own use and benefit by falsely pretending that she was a contracted employee of the Deeds and Commercial Registry Authority.
The allegations outlined that Baksh did this knowing that she was a pensionable employee, having been appointed by the JSC. The claim further outlined that the Registrar unlawfully paid herself a higher salary than was approved by the JSC for the stated period between 2014 and 2017.
However in defence of Baksh, Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall S.C., had released a statement last September in which he contended that the decision to charge Ms. Baksh was a politically driven one by his predecessor, Basil Williams.
Nandlall said that Baksh was charged for simply receiving her salary from the Deeds and Commercial Registry Authority, which authorised the transfer of all staff from the Deeds Registry and converted them into employees of the Authority, inclusive of the Registrar of Deeds. He lamented that there is nothing wrong with a person being appointed by one agency and paid by another.
Nandlall also noted that Baksh’s resumption to duties as the Registrar of Deeds was under review, that her conviction is the subject of an appeal and if it were to be squashed or set aside by a Court then the Board of the Deeds and Commercial Registry will address the issue of her resumption. Despite that, he said that she remains the Registrar of Deeds because she was not “disappointed” by the JSC.

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