Archive for October 13th, 2010
Man beaten with bull’s penis
(CNS): Police have confirmed this evening that they are investigating a report regarding an assault on a man which took place in Bodden Town Road last night at around 6.40pm. CNS understands from unconfirmed reports that the male assailant was a well known member of the Bodden Town business community whose weapon of choice appears to have been a dried cow cod (a bull’s penis). Police told CNS they were unable to offer further details on either the weapon or the identity of the man who allegedly committed the assault. A spokesperson said that no arrests have yet been made and enquiries into the incident were ongoing. Meanwhile, Bodden Town MLA Dwayne Seymour has been charged by police in connection with a fight at Cayman Beach Suites earlier this year.
Hurricane Paula shakes up cruise itineraries
(USA Today Travel): Nearly a dozen cruise ships in the Caribbean have altered their itineraries, as a result of Hurricane Paula. These include eight vessels operated by industry giant Carnival that collectively are carrying more than 20,000 vacationers. Among the most affected is the 2,124-passenger Carnival Legend, which skipped Cozumel today. The line also has canceled the ship’s stops in Roatan, Honduras and Belize scheduled for Thursday and Friday. The 2,974-passenger Carnival Conquest also will head to Key West instead of calls in Grand Cayman and Cozumel.
Cayman businessman embroiled in million $ case
(CNS): A multi-million dollar trust company based in Turks & Caicos Islands is at the centre of a legal dispute there and in Jamaica, according to reports in the Turks & Caicos Sun. The case involves Delroy Howell (left), former owner of Cayman business Quik-Cash and its parent company, First Financial Caribbean Trust Company, which was formed by Howell, a Jamaican national, about ten years ago. Howell, who lives in the Cayman Islands, sold the firm in July but he claims that his former employee, Judith Wilchcombe, improperly acquired a number of shares in the company. Investigations by the Turks based publication, however, have revealed that the court case in the TCI is part of a much larger set of legal proceedings in Jamaica alleging financial wrong doing by Howell and one of his directors at FFCTC.
The Sun reports that there is more to the case involving Howell and First Financial Caribbean Trust Co. Ltd than the dispute with Wilchcombe in Turks. “There was an audit of the Trust Company which showed that US$14 million was unaccounted for and that millions in US dollars were allegedly transferred to Delroy Howell personally and several companies which he controlled,” the Sun reports. “Allegedly, when the beneficiaries of the trust company demanded payment of their funds, requests to Delroy Howell and his companies to account for the funds went unanswered.”
Camana Bay secures tenant for third office building
(CNS): Local law firm Mourant Ozannes has revealed that it has agreed to become the anchor tenant of a new 62,000 square foot commercial building located in the Town Centre of Camana Bay which is expected to be finished in 2012. The lawyers will occupy the top two floors of the third commercial building that Dart will build in the new town. Neal Lomax, Managing Partner of Mourant Ozannes in the Cayman Islands said the firm was growing and it needed new larger premises to accommodate that future growth.
Tobacco dealers to ‘cough up’ cash for new licence
(CNS): While smoking was banned in public places from the beginning of 2010, tobacco dealers had a further twelve months to comply with the requirement in the lawfor them to register. However, all dealers will need to have a Certificate of Registration (similar to a Trade and Business License) before 1 January 2011. Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kiran Kumar will host tobacco dealers’ awareness sessions this week to help them prepare for general Tobacco Law compliance, government officials said. The yearly registration fees are CI$500 for a retailer; CI$750 for a cigar bar, and CI$5,000 for a wholesale distributor or importer.
According to the law, everyone dealing with tobacco products must register annually and display the Certificate of Registration. In order to continue operating legally Cayman’s tobacco dealers must be registered before the start of next year and the Public Health Department is encouraging them to submit their applications by 1 November 2010.
Task force adressing mental health care, says minister
(CNS): The minster for health has admitted that there have been both deficiencies in treatment for mental health and a public awareness gap allowing the stigmatisation of people with mental health problems. In his message marking World Mental Health Day, Mark Scotland said his ministry has recognized the need for a new approach and has appointed a Mental Health Taskforce to draft a National Mental Health Policy and review legislation. Concerns have been raised for many years in Cayman about the lack of adequate mental health care to treat those with serious conditions, many of whom end up in the prison system.
Animal activists to “paws” for a little wine
(CNS): Local animal activists will be trying to raise money to keep up the fight against cruelty to animals next month with a wine tasting evening. Cayman Animal Rescue Enthusiasts is a new non-governmental organisation with the goal of preventing cruelty and suffering to all domestic animals as well as address the problem of over-population with the promotion of spaying and neutering local animals. CARE hopes to raise more funds at the wine tasting evening so they can continue paying for the surgical procedures to keep the unwanted pet population down. To date, in less than 12 months since the charity was registered CARE has been able to organise 177 surgeries preventing the birth of unwanted animals and easing the pressure on the humane society.
NPO names only 14 offenders
(CNS): Following afreedom of information request for a list of local employers that are failing to make their employee pension contributions, the NPO has released only 14 names, despite the fact that there are hundreds more. According to a recent report by the Complaints Commissioner, over the past decade the National Pensions Office has received some 2000 complaints relating to more than 600 different employers. However, the NPO said it could only release the names of employers in the cases that have reached the court system. Although some of the other complaints have been resolved, the majority are still under investigation while the unnamed delinquent employers continue their business and employ more staff.
New business idea offers early warning on corruption
(Swiss Info): The rising tide of anti-corruption legislation and the growing cost of reputational damage are forcing companies to be more careful about who they do business with. Steering clear of laundered money, organised crime, bribery andtrading sanctions is a priority. One enterprise, formed to help Swiss banks comply with money laundering rules, specialises in keeping firms out of hot water. Despite their best efforts, many multinationals still sometimes find themselves on the wrong side of the law. This year, Swiss firm ABB was fined after a bribery probe while Credit Suisse was also forced to pay up for dealings with countries subject to United States sanctions.
Doing business on a global scale has turned into a minefield and the rising costs of negotiating a safe path have spawned a new industry that allows companies to outsource some of the expensive research.
National count is secure, insists ESO
(CNS): As almost 300 enumerators begin the surveys for the country’s national census the Economics and Statistics office says the process is both safe and secure. Recent changes to the Statistics Law mean that Cayman’s residents can be assured that data gathered by Census 2010 will remain confidential . Despite some concerns raised in the public domain about trusting census workers the ESO said they have been chosen carefully and added that the penalties for breaching the confidence of the survey, as a result of legislative amendments, are now quite sever. The ESO also noted that there are penalties in the law, as well, to deal with those that refuse to take part in the census.