Rasbert Turner, Gleaner Writer

Spanish Town, St. Catherine:

A man the police claim to be a "senior fraudist" was remanded in custody after pleading guilty to fraud-related charges in the Spanish Town Resident Magistrate's Court on Tuesday.

Paul Pinnock, a 48-year-old businessman of De La Vega City in Spanish Town, was charged with obtaining money by means of false pretence. Arresting officer Detective Corporal Sherie Thomas of the Spanish Town Police Station said that between 2003 and December last year, Pinnock collected hundreds of thousands of dollars from un-suspecting females along with their passports, telling them that he could get them United States and United Kingdom visas.

Mode of operation

Detective Corporal Thomas went on to say that Pinnock's mode of operation was to convince the women that he had a legitimate business abroad and they should pay him between J$10,000 and J$20,000 to have their documents sorted out. Having failed to deliver on his promises, several complaints were lodged to the police and investigations led to his arrest and charge.

When he appeared before Resident Magistrate Lorna Gayle he pleaded guilty. He defended his action by telling the court: "I'm a legitimate businessman, but was charged with money laundering."

He went on to declare that the complainants were willing participants who had several passports and at least one was a deportee. He was told this was not an excuse and was subsequently remanded until June 21 when he will be sentenced.