Barbara Gayle, Staff Reporter

The Assets Recovery Agency got orders yesterday from the Supreme Court to freeze the multimillion-dollar assets of the Jamaican woman who was charged this year after more than US$1.3 million (J$91 million) was found in a freezer at her house.

The woman is Delores Elizabeth Miller, who is facing a money laundering charge.

Miller, Rohan Anthony Fisher, Ricardo Fisher and Karen Vassell are joint owners of properties, bank accounts and several motor cars.

The agency, which brought its first case yesterday under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2007 was successful in getting orders freezing the assets of the four defendants, which amount to millions of dollars.

Freezing orders

Justice Gloria Smith, after hearing an application from Solicitor General, Michael Hylton, Q.C., and attorney-at-law Amina Maknoon, granted the freezing orders.

The defendants are barred from disposing of, or dealing with the assets which include six properties, a minibus, two motorcycles, J$9 million and US$60,000 (J$4.2 million) in their accounts in banks and building societies. The US$1,350,000 is among the assets frozen.

Properties

One of the properties is at West Cumberland, St. Catherine; three are at Hellshire Glades, St. Catherine, and two are at Plantation Village, St. Ann.

The defendants have been ordered by the court to disclose to the agency within the next 14 days the nature and location of all assets held by them.

The agency has the power under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2007 to apply to the court to confiscate the assets of perpetrators of all forms of criminal activities.

Mr. Hylton said yesterday that an important feature of the new law was that, even if personswere found not guilty of offences, the agency can still apply to have their assets forfeited as a result of the civil standard of proof.

barbara.gayle@gleanerjm.com