SOCU arrests Carol Joseph over allegedly defrauding MARDS $6.1M

Dec 10, 2022 News

Kaieteur News – Former Director of the Mahaica Abary Rice Development Scheme (MARDS) Rice Milling Complex Limited and a member of the Opposition People’s National Congress (PNC) Carol Joseph was on Friday arrested by the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) after the Agency reportedly found that she singlehandedly approved 14 monetary transactions totalling $6.1M without the knowledge of the entity’s Board.

Joseph, who was the APNU+AFC’s Chief Scrutineer, could possibly face up to 14 fraud charges. She has since been released by has been asked to return to SOCU’s headquarters on December 16, 2022 for additional questioning.

Joseph’s attorney speaking with members of the press outside of SOCU’s office after she was released.

Opposition Member, Carol Joseph

According to SOCU, Joseph between June 1, 2016 and August 2016 solely approved the monetary transactions. The money in question was reportedly used by Joseph for her personal activities and not MARDS.

Meanwhile Joseph’s lawyers, Nigel Hughes and Roysdale Forde told reporters that the allegations levelled against their client seems to be an intimidating tactic because she filed a lawsuit against the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) to nullify the current Voters’ List ahead of Local Government Elections (LGE).

“Just the date of the allegations speak for themselves, this is May 2016 now is 2022. The present administration has been in office since 2020 and no attempt was made to lay these allegations other than until after Ms. Joseph commenced proceedings against GECOM,” Hughes told reporters.

Similarly, Attorney Forde said, “I believe that that they are seeking to intimidate the Members of the Opposition because we do not want to participate in a process that is fraud.”

Joseph, this week filed a lawsuit against GECOM, the Chief Elections Officer (CEO) and the Attorney General seeking over fourteen declarations and four orders intended to nullify the preliminary list of electors and give rise to a new register of voters, before Local Government Elections (LGE) are held.

The APNU+AFC has long expressed major concerns over the compilation of the Voters’ List on the basis that it is bloated with dead people and thousands of Guyanese that have migrated.

One of the declarations that Joseph wants the High Court inter alia to make is GECOM acted unlawfully when it opted not to compile the Preliminary List of Voters for the Local Elections in accordance with the Local Authorities (Elections) Act as amended by Act No. 15 of 2015.