The leader of the British Virgin Islands has been arrested in an undercover sting operation after accepting cash to help a major drugs shipment organised with the aid of a group from Hezbollah, according to US court documents.
Premier Andrew Fahie, 51, and his chief port official were arrested in Miami for allegedly accepting $700,000 from an informant posing as a member of Mexico’s Sinaloa drug cartel.
The informant had asked for help from a group of “self-proclaimed Lebanese Hezbollah operatives” with a safe berth in the BVI for a cocaine shipment from Colombia to the United States, according to court documents.
The Hezbollah group said they would provide introductions to senior BVI officials, including the head of security for Mr Fahie and the head of the port authority, Oleanvine Maynard, who the Hezbollah group said they “owned”.
In a series of subsequent meetings between the informant and Mr Fahie, the premier complained that he was not paid enough by the British authorities for leading the government since 2019.
Mr Fahie – known as Head Coach in secret communications between the plotters – tried to assure himself that the informant was not working for law enforcement.
“It took me 20 years to get here and I don’t want to leave in 20 minutes,” he is said to have told the informant for the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).
Mr Fahie and Ms Maynard were arrested on Thursday after they travelled to Miami and were shown the cash in designer shopping bags on a plane. The money was in exchange for allowing the drug shipment through the Caribbean territory, according to the DEA.
The UK government was shocked by the news that Mr Fahie will face charges of drug trafficking and money laundering.
"I am appalled by these serious allegations," British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said in a statement late on Thursday.
She said the arrests underlined the need to release a recently concluded investigation into alleged corruption and abuse of office under the Fahie government.
The investigation began in January 2021 and was overseen by British Virgin Islands governor John Rankin. Ms Truss said Mr Rankin would set out the next steps on Friday, "including urgent publication of the inquiry's report".
Mr Rankin, an appointee of Queen Elizabeth II on advice from the UK government, urged calm in the islands after the "shocking news" of Mr Fahie's detention.
The self-governing Caribbean archipelago is home to about 35,000 people and is an overseas territory of the United Kingdom, which supervises its defence and foreign policy.
It is one of the world's leading offshore tax havens. Both the local government and London have been accused by anti-corruption campaigners of turning a blind eye to illicit flows of foreign money.
The officials' arrests "should send a clear message", DEA administrator Anne Milgram said.
"Anyone involved with bringing dangerous drugs into the United States will be held accountable, no matter their position."
Court documents filed on Thursday showed that Mr Fahie, Ms Maynard and Ms Maynard's son are all charged with "conspiracy to import five kilograms or more of cocaine" and "conspiracy to launder money".
Deputy Premier Natalio "Sowande" Wheatley will remain acting premier indefinitely.
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
Silent Hill f
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Rating: 4.5/5
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Results
6pm: Dubai Trophy – Conditions (TB) $100,000 (Turf) 1,200m
Winner: Silent Speech, William Buick (jockey), Charlie Appleby
(trainer)
6.35pm: Jumeirah Derby Trial – Conditions (TB) $60,000 (T)
1,800m
Winner: Island Falcon, Frankie Dettori, Saeed bin Suroor
7.10pm: UAE 2000 Guineas Trial – Conditions (TB) $60,000 (Dirt)
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Winner: Rawy, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer
7.45pm: Al Rashidiya – Group 2 (TB) $180,000 (T) 1,800m
Winner: Desert Fire, Hector Crouch, Saeed bin Suroor
8.20pm: Al Fahidi Fort – Group 2 (TB) $180,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Naval Crown, William Buick, Charlie Appleby
8.55pm: Dubawi Stakes – Group 3 (TB) $150,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Al Tariq, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watsons
9.30pm: Aliyah – Rated Conditions (TB) $80,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Dubai Icon, Patrick Cosgrave, Saeed bin Suroor
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
The Birkin bag is made by Hermès.
It is named after actress and singer Jane Birkin
Noone from Hermès will go on record to say how much a new Birkin costs, how long one would have to wait to get one, and how many bags are actually made each year.
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
UAE squad
Rohan Mustafa (captain), Ashfaq Ahmed, Ghulam Shabber, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Shaiman Anwar, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Qadeer Ahmed, Mohammed Naveed, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan
SPECS
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MWTC
Tickets start from Dh100 for adults and are now on sale at www.ticketmaster.ae and Virgin Megastores across the UAE. Three-day and travel packages are also available at 20 per cent discount.
The specs
Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 217hp at 5,750rpm
Torque: 300Nm at 1,900rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh130,000
On sale: now
Generation Start-up: Awok company profile
Started: 2013
Founder: Ulugbek Yuldashev
Sector: e-commerce
Size: 600 plus
Stage: still in talks with VCs
Principal Investors: self-financed by founder
