Booi and Elhage to appear before the judge again

June 06, 2011 7:22 AM

The Bonairean (former) politicians Ramonsito Booi and Burney Elhage will be present Tuesday in Court on Curaçao with the consideration of a plaint from the Foundation Bon Governashon.

This is within the framework of an investigation that was started in 2009 into accusations of fraud and corruption against the two. Earlier this year, the Public Prosecutor (OM) ruled that Booi and Elhage would no longer be prosecuted after the case against the two was dismissed.

Attorney Gelmer Pieter of Pieter & Wilsoe Attorneys at Law, who defends Booi and Elhage together with Everett Wilsoe, explained before Paradise FM that the case was closed– the OM had dismissed the case. However, the Foundation Bon Governashon filed a plaint, requesting the Court to continue prosecution. “If the Court decides accordingly, prosecution will be continued.”
According to Pieter, the defense thinks this will not happen. “This is an exceptional case. The criminal procedure proceeded differently than other criminal procedures, in the sense that an investigation was conducted a long time ago. It is not a case, which the OM had held over or investigated carelessly. In that sense, the case had already been given considerable attention. Decisions were constantly taken based on a critical view of the examining judge. Everything was done very carefully. We assume that the judge will not decide to continue the case."

Booi was former leader of the UPB and Elhage former minister for the party. In September 2009, house searches were conducted with the two within the framework of a large-scale investigation into money laundering and international drug trade. The two were never arrested and after a summons was not served at the end of last year, their lawyers demanded the OM would stop the investigation. At the beginning of this year, the OM requested the examining judge to continue an investigation, but that request was rejected and the case was subsequently dismissed. The case got moving after publication of the so-called Black Book on corruption and fraud in the politics of Bonaire, which was published by the Fundashon Bon Gobernashon.

4 June 2011