JAMAICA GLEANER, Antigua’s Director of Public Prosecutions, Anthony Armstrong, who is facing fraud charges in relation to three land transactions, is to know on Thursday whether his passport will be returned to him.
The Jamaican attorney-at-law was arrested on Saturday on his arrival at the Norman Manley International Airport and later charged with conspiracy and fraudulent conversion.
His passport was confiscated and he was released on $500,000 bail.
The charges reportedly stem from the sale of three properties 18 years ago in Jamaica, in which Armstrong represented the complainant, who was the vendor.
The complainant in the matter had reported Armstrong to the General Legal Council (GLC) over the matter.
The Disciplinary Committee of the GLC in February found that Armstrong was guilty of professional misconduct for signing a document for a client who was not present.
On Monday morning when the matter was mentioned in the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court, attorney-at-law Hugh Wildman, who expressed shock at the arrest of his client, said there was no basis for Armstrong to be charged.
He said that the GLC had found him not guilty of the charges and that the complainant is a self-confessed rogue and drug trafficker who is trying to muddy his client’s reputation.
Wildman also asked that his client’s passport be returned.
However, the investigating officer in the matter objected to the return of Armstrong’s passport.
She told the court that the police had asked Armstrong to come in for an interview from August, but he refused.
But Wildman sought to dispel the investigator’s claim.
He said his client returned to facilitate the investigation and was of the view that he was going to attend a question-and-answer session but was instead arrested and charged.
Wildman also denied that his client had refused to come in for the interview.
Parish Judge Venise Blackstock Murray asked for the matter to be set for Thursday when she will rule on the passport request.
