New Prime Minister, Tillman Thomas has issued instructions to Attorney General, Jimmy Bristol to write the U.S government to seek a copy of a video-tape allegedly depicting a bribery payment to his predecessor, Dr.
Keith Mitchell.
Prime Minister Thomas confirmed to GRENADA TODAY on Monday night that the so-called Briefcase affair in which the ex-Prime Minister is accused of collecting US$500, 000.00 from imprisoned con-man Eric Resteiner in Switzerland in June 2000 is to be pursued to the fullest.
"I have already spoken to the AG on this matter. I have asked him to proceed with the letter", he said.
According to Prime Minister Thomas, his busy schedule since taking office following the July 8 general elections has not allowed him to check with Bristol to make sure that the letter had already been despatched to the Justice Department in Washington.
The request is being made under the Mutual Assistance Treaty that exists between the governments of Grenada and the United States.
Under the treaty, the Attorney-General is the one charged with the responsibility of activating the agreement and making requests for assistance from the U.S government. Bristol could not be reached on Tuesday for comment on the issue.
However, authoritative sources told this newspaper that Bristol is known to have drafted the letter several weeks ago as part of the preparatory work needed to approach the american for assistance on the issue.
Over the years, Prime Minister Thomas while in opposition had consistently indicated that under his watch anyone who breaks the law can expect to face due process.
The Bristol letter is expected to be the first step in the move by the new rulers in St. George's to re-open the Briefcase affair which dogged the Mitchell government in its last term in office during the November 2003 to July 2008 period.
According to well-placed sources, local attorney-at-law, Anslem Clouden, a fierce critic of the Mitchell government while in office, has made available to Attorney-General Bristol a number of documents considered to be key to the Briefcase issue.
One of the documents is said to be the Eric Resteiner Sentencing Memorandum in which the trial judge made repeated references to the alleged bribery tape involving Dr. Mitchell.
The document states that Resteiner had made copies of the tape available to law enforcement officials in the U.S as part of an attempt to obtain a lesser sentence on mail and wire fraud.
The sentencing judge noted that the video-tape could have been made available to the then governing authorities in Grenada but the necessary request to be made was not forthcoming from then Attorney-General, Elvin Nimrod.
Resteiner who was granted Grenadian citizenship by the Mitchell government is currently serving a 7-year jail sentence in Texas after convicted of fraud. He could be deported to either Grenada or the Seychelles by the U.S government on completion of the sentence.
Speculation is rife that if successful in procuring the video-tape, the Thomas government would ask the Royal Grenada Police force (RGPF) and other law enforcement officials to mount a criminal investigation into the Switzerland affair.
A one-man Commission of Inquiry that was appointed by Governor-General, Sir Daniel Williams, after limited hearings, cleared the ex-Prime Minister of any wrong-doing.
Although he was not called to give evidence before the inquiry, Dr. Mitchell was chastised by Commissioner Richard Cheltenham of Barbados for admitting that he collected "approximately US$15, 000.00" from the fraudster.
Cheltenham also raised concerns over the fact that none of the persons who accompanied the Prime Minister to the meeting with Resteiner witnessed the transaction and also lamented the fact that Dr. Mitchell had not been forthcoming on where the put the money after collecting it from the con man.
Other court documents obtained by this newspaper from the U.S allege that Resteiner had made another payment of US$500, 000.00 to Dr. Mitchell in Grenada itself as part of a one million dollar deal to land diplomatic status.
