Thank you for visiting WWW.BELGRAFIX.COM, "Grenada on the Internet, one byte at a time"

HOME	OCTOBER 01st, 2005

By MAT PROBASCO
The Associated Press

CHARLOTTE AMALIE, U.S. Virgin Islands - U.S. agents arrested a Virgin Islands woman for allegedly posing as an American ambassador, occasionally getting body guard protection and even riding in motorcades, an official said Friday.

Elena Lin Yee was arrested Thursday and charged with impersonating a U.S.. government official and misuse of official documents, said Christopher Tremann, a special agent with the U.S. State Department's Diplomatic Security. He said Yee used fake credentials to pose as a U.S. ambassador to Grenada, the wife of a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and a U.S. ambassador-at-large.

The woman is said to be Ambassador Lilly who flew into Grenada in 1995 shortly after Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell came into office. The so-called "Ambassador Lilly" promised the Mitchell government millions of dollars to help construct the National Sporting stadium at Queen's Park.

The "diplomat" also took part in a ground breaking ceremony with Dr. Mitchell and his Cabinet for the stadium. She failed to deliver on the promise. Dr. Mitchell later admitted in a press conference that "Ambassador Lilly" had given "a donation" for the facility but declined to give the amount. She also convinced U.S. and foreign government officials to provide her with body guards, motorcades and access to events, Tremann said.

He said the State Department had investigated Lee in 1996 for using false credentials, but no charges were filed. He said her arrest came after she allegedly tried to bypass U.S. customs by using State Department credentials. The credentials were authentic but Lee had not been entitled to them, he said.

By posing as a U.S. ambassador-at-large, Yee also briefly held a seat on the advisory board of the National Society of High School Scholars, said Delle Driskell, vice-president of the Atlanta-based organization, which provides scholarships to high school graduates.

She was released on $10,000 bail. Yee, a longtime resident of St. Thomas, the largest U.S. Virgin island, could face up to eight years in prison if convicted. She will be arraigned Sept. 21. "Ambassador Lilly was allegedly appointed by the NNP government as Grenada's Ambassador-at-large.

She has connections to the Eli Lily Pharmaceuticals fortune and claimed she was an heiress. She reportedly gave 15,000 to the Grenada Permanent Representative for a party at the UN.