Missing woman’s husband told to leave island
(CNS): The immigration department is asking the husband of missing person Anna Ebanks Evans, who disappeared almost one year ago, to leave the Cayman Islands. Gary Evans, who is a Jamaican national, told the local television news channel that despite still being married to Anna, who is Caymanian, he has been told to leave the country. Evans is father to three Caymanian children and has been in the country since 1984. Although he was questioned in the wake of his wife’s disappearance from the George Town landfill January last year, he has never been charged with any crime relating to the whereabouts of Anna.
Speaking to Cayman 27, Evans said he has been told that he must leave Cayman because he has no rights to remain, but he believes that the department has not taken in consideration the fact that he has children that are Caymanian and he is still married to a Caymanian. He also said that his application for permanent residency had been blocked.
Anna was last seen at around noon Thursday 27 January 2011 by her cousin at the George Town landfill, where they both worked. The alarm was raised when Anna, a director of wagons at the landfill, did not meet up with her work colleagues at the end of her shift.
Despite extensive searches and the use of a specilly trained canine unit from the US, there have been no sightings of Anna since she disappeared.
Category: Local News
… is this actually legal? This is absolutely appalling.
Im not surprised,
what can i tell you, i was once married to a caymanian too, my child was not his but was a child of the marriage. we got divource and i had to leave the island after immigration sent me a letter stating no more work permit after seven years. i left the country because i have a home else where and life does not stop after cayman,, some of these people think Cayman is the only place to reside come on give me a break if immigration says your to leave find out on what grounds, if you have to go pack and go. the only reason why alot of expats are there in the first place is because of the job oppertunity and no tax. if most expats could do better im sure they would rather be in there own countries than living there.
There is something I don't understand about this. If Mr. Evans has been resident here since 1984 and is/was married to a Caymanian why does he not have Caymanian status?
There is obviously more to this story than meets the eye.
I suspect there are two sides to this story and would like to hear the side of immigration.
My question "What has he done to earn the right to stay"?
Making babies isn't too difficult for a male to do, so give me some other good reasons he should stay. I can't just produce babies and expect to stay in another man's country. I have to do something more constructive than that if I want to change my nationality. GEEZZZZZ
Human Rights are their to protect those we don’t like, just as free speech is there to protect people saying what others don’t want to hear.
This Country is heartless how can they prove that this man kill his wife they can not seperate this man from his children. My God who will take care of these children, now I know the immigration department careless about these kids, this ma lives in this country for all these years and get these children so what happen to his rights from these kids they where born in wedlock. Wake up. Sir get a lawyer and take your case to England.
Good job Linda!
Ms. Evans sending home Mr. Evans? I am confused. Will somebody please help me to understand the Evans?
Two words…JUDICIAL REVIEW….
Old Chinese proverb : If you only seek revenge then dig two graves. This man is innocent until proven guilty. The law is the law ! So why not deport that man that beat up 2 women , one of them twice and went to Northward and is out in society already. He is not married to Caymanian or has status.
This is not a simple immigration/human rights matter.
To paint such a picture to the public is misleading. There is more to this story and to this man than what this article states and the public has the right to know this.
I hope CNS publishes this comment so that people know it is not such a clear cut simple issue and there is a lot more to Mrs.Evans decision.
She made the correct decision.
While Immigration is cleaning house and sending away people for unknown reasons , I hope they clean out the PR violators, Status abusers, unqualified persons working on permits stating they are qualified, persons living and working here illegally, etc. This could keep them very busy for a long time and if they ned help with names I am happy to provide…..make the tough calls Immigration……but send the worst offenders away first…..you know who they are.
Of course they know who they are. They are the ones with the best contacts in Immigration.
Here is a novel idea- get both sides of the story before making a comment. Wow how quick we are to judge the unknown. Shame on the posters for not at least trusting our Chief Immigration Officer
Did CNS or the TV station contact anyone at immigration before publishing this story? What year did he marry? What year did he apply for permanent residency? These seem like important questions to be answered before making the judgements posted here.
somthings missing from this story,all the facts are not being presented.i would like to hear a responece from the immigration dept to hear the facts.
Mrs Evans needs to be careful with decisions like this. The environment is sometimes a slippery slope and she may stumble and fall and find her bosses in government not willing to pick her up or support the reason she fell.
Very clever comment. As a member of the Immigration Dept, I wonder how many people will understand what's behind it.
The floors are too slippy in Immigration?
I can’t wait until this November with the new HR Law coming in. I hope government has allocated a huge slush fund for all the law suites that are going to be filed against the immigration department and the officers themselfs.
It’s going to be fun…
Staggered by this.
Making it simple.
His wife has not been declared dead.
As long as she is alive, he has every right to remain here.
End. Of. Story.
Where is the accountability for the staff member at Immigration who signed off on this ?
Nonsense. In no country on earth, including the UK, is a foreign national permitted to reside on the simple basisof marriage to a citizen.
I would encourage Caymanians to hold their heads up and don't be like the Ostrich, with their heads buried in the sand. Just a thought.
What a great test of Mr. Coles and our "Human Rights Commission" aka a Useless Waste of Space. If nothing is said about this then it will be clear that the body exists to hamper the development of human rights in Cayman not develop it.
We don’t even treat our criminals this harshly. Expel them instead.
I hope a local attorney that is in full knowledge of both the immigration law/s & the rights of Mr. Evans under those laws, as well as the human rights issue, steps forward to offer legal advice & represenation to him on the matter . Atrocious treatment by the C.I. Immigration. I also hope those in the portfolio in the U.K are reading this story.
Mackeeva wants more foreigners to come and work & make their lives here, then recieve this type of treatment ?
Nothing unusual here except it has received news coverage. It happens more than you think. I am a Caymanian and married a foreigner. I have to jump through hoops to get her residency and there is no guarantee of it either. I had to prove I was Caymanian to the very people that give me the passport, thats how stupid it is. If the board declines it, your screwed. Heck I dont even know what my kids will be, because one year they get nationality through the mother and another the father.
You people have no idea what your talking about. Who is taking care of the Children? Not one of you has any idea what is going on here by reading the posts
Information related to this case is confidential and cannot be declared to the public. If the facts surrounding this case are presented to the public then and only then can the public make a fair comment. Until such a time, the public must be mineful of commenting on what the immigration department should and should not be doing.
Whatever the theory, the only people who are treated according to the letter and the spirit of our laws relating to Immigration and other administrative matters are those who can afford the best lawyers.
How can you expect somone to leave the island in such short notice? What if he doesn't have the funds to purchase his ticket?
To me it's just a excuse, if immigration see that he doesn't leave the island they will contact RCIPS to lock him down and do whatever with him.
PLUS, he is married to a caymanian was never divorce with Mrs. Evans so he should still have the right to stay & ALSO have three caymanian kids that live on the island.
They don't have a mother to look up on. Now they won't have a father either.
I think it's absolutly unfair, immigration has no right. He hasn't been charged for the murder of his wife. If he was then they have a right to do so. But what if he wasn't the one that murdered her? Wouldn't immigration feel bad in what they have done?
Being married to a Caymanian does not give you the 'right' of abode. Thats the law bobo
Absolutely correct decision. Keep up the good work Linda Evans.
What has happened here is that there is things which the public do not know, so I just wish all those who do not know why this man is being asked to leave would just shut up. You do not know what has happened and the immigration has carefully assesed a situation which brought these conclusions. Some of you just want to know immigration business. Ms Linda, dont tell them anything, it is not their business. If the want to find out information they can go to the police or to the Children and family service or GIS.
Mr. Evans – call the Complaints Commissioner and make an appointment to see her because you have rights. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.
Iron rusts with the salt air of Cayman Immigration.
I stand firm behind the immigration department, do not let anyone manipulate you. We are tired of the abuse by those who visit us.
Ancient Chinese Proverb – "If a Caymanian says its true, then it must be true."
More Ancient Chinese Proverb – "If an expat says it is true, then it must be true."
This is despicable. SHAME on you, Immigration Dept.
10:41 Please cut the crap, Immigration is doing an excellent job. Stop trying to Manipulate them.
I dunno about you folks but this is a lawsuit in the making. Mark my words – I know I would sue.
Immigration gets away with this stuff precisely because they know what it costs a victim to sue. Moreover, no attorney on island is going to take such a case pro bono.
This just goes to show how unequipped the Immigration Dept. actually are to deal with real life situations.
Sure, the letter of the law means that if you lose your Caymanian status then you may have to leave the island unless you have a work permit, but really…given the actual facts of this real life situation is seems plain to anyone to grant this guy an exception.
He lost his wife for heavens sake and is the father of the Caymanian children. He has been here since 1984. Do the immigration dept really intend to break up the family and leave the children with no father in Cayman?
It is the heavy-handed uncaring application of these laws which show us to be unable to uphold basic human rights. No wonder the Philippine government will no longer allow their nationals to come and work here. Shameful.
Well thats hardly an entirely accurate post.
This situation seems like something that would have happened in the old days not like something that would happen in the 21st century.
Also it sounds like there is much more to this story.
The only news is here is that this made the news. This sort of stuff happens all the time. 7, 10, 15, 28 years mean nothing here.
Recently a husband, with Residency, passed away in a Miami hospital. His wife and kids had great difficulty passing through Immigration because she had lost her residency due to his death a few weeks earlier. She had to plead with the Immigration officer to allow her in so she could deal with things like selling their home and informing the school that the kids would no longer be attending.
In this case the Tin Man found a heart and did the humane thing. To the relief of some posters on this site, the mother and children did leave the island. So not to worry.
A Jamaican man was married to an american woman and living in USA with her. Has residence. so he said.
His wife died in a a road accident two years ago, and he was asked to leave with 4 children who was not hers. He had no children by her. Can an American tell me if this story sounds correct, or is there more to it.
Man, this makes me angry. The authorities here too incompetent to tell him whether she's alive or dead but they're efficient enough to deport him? Surely they'd have to show that his wife is either dead or not living here before they could have grounds to cancel his work permit. And this is the first time I've felt the need to criticise the journalism on this site; CNS there's no need to point out that he hasn't been charged with her disappearance, as though the lack of charges is news or is surprising. He wasn't charged because the police ruled him out as a suspect.
caymankind…..
As usual unsupervised ignorant biased and unqualified civil servants making decisions with no legal basis. This man has rights which are being violated in every sense of the word. As we would say in Jamaica he is being screwed without grease. These high ranking civil servants must be held accountable in a court of law for their decisions which cost our country money. This man has not been charged or found guilty of anything why is he being treated like a criminal. Come on HR committee please step in and do the right thing.
This is an easy ,easy ,easy victory for him…………….What does the EHCR stands for again?
If I were a Caymanian, I would be so unbelievable ashamed.
Is this the christian heritage you are all talking about ?
Disgusting ! ! ! ! ! !
Cayman Kind?
Here is the proof, 1984.
Its often said here that people will get key employee, then residency with the right to work and then given status. That this government wants 100,000 people so the process about is a done deal.
It used to be said that the we needed to implement the rollover because someone who lives here 10 years or more will be given the right to stay.
Its all hogwash. Immigration fears no one and has it own agenda. Residency with the Right to Work was changed from Permanent Residency to get rid of the word "permanent". You see, the "permanent" would give one the wrong impression. Residency with the right to work restricts one to a particular field. A fact often neglected to be said.
The fact is Immigration has no problems taking not giving residency and / or taking it away. They know the true cost to defend oneself and very few people have it. If they do have the money to defend, its not likely to get to court.
Once was has been here enough years after residency, one can apply. "APPLY" for status. It can be denied even though one will have been hear 15 years or more. Remember the 10 year rule?
The truth is Residency and Status are meaningless. Those who have them, should still live in fear. Immigration is based on who knows who. Points and papers can be lost and found, bought and sold.
There is some truth in your comments but it is also has some fundamental errors.
"Residency with the Right to Work was changed from Permanent Residency to get rid of the word "permanent"."
Wrong. The whole of Part IV of the Immigration Law (2011 Revision) addresses "Permanent Residency".
"Once was has been here enough years after residency, one can apply. "APPLY" for status".
One can only apply for status if one has been naturalised as a BOTC and not on the basis of length of residency alone.
This place disgusts me. You are never safe as a foreigner. Someone in immigration actually made that decision, my blood is boiling! He's still married!
Why don't we reserve judgement until all the facts are in.
06:36 I have two words for you GO HOME. How ungrateful you are, you come to this Island to get bread put on your table, maybe feed your hungry children and wife, yet then and then you are so ungrateful because you cannot have it your way. Why the hell dont you leave and stop critizing Immigration department and the people of Cayman. "Make your blood boil?" For our Island sake, please go and boil your blood in some kerosene pan along a high way. Ungrateful.
Immigration decisions never cease to surprise me. Until we have truth on Annas disappearance then it is illegal to deport him.
Cayman is a Christian country??????
This situation has left a terrible terrible stain on our society and as for the foreign controlled RCIPS you should be disbanded as a police service for what has went on here! There is No justice for the poor on this island ,that is becoming more an more clear each day.
Its one thing to protect your national borders and controll the flow of immigrants but it is quite another to try to rip a family apart out of pure prejudice. What a heartless bunch these people are.
My understanding of common laws regarding the disappearance of a person is that a person is unable to declare a missing person dead without a body or significant evidence to consider the person dead, or be allowed to divorce a person on grounds of desertion until a significant (most countries 7 years) has passed. Disappearance means no closure. Ever.
The family of a missing person are unable to claim death benefits until the person is declared dead.
So if my understanding is correct then i would have assumed that for immigration purposes the same principals would apply ie until a person isdeclared dead or there is a divorce then status remains as married thus mr. Evans would be considered married and in this case married to a caymanIan so eligible to remain in cayman.
In terms of the deportation itself On the basis that this is an unsolved case here, deporting a person who is so connected to the case seems odd. Why does he have to leave just because there is no physical presence of his caymanian wife? law say if you are married to a caymanian you are eligible to work and remain in cayman so don’t need a work permit.
Assuming this man is not guilty of anything untoward relating to ms. Anna, then surely he is going through enough trying to deal with a disappearance of a family member and cope financially without now having to also deal with immigration laws that are clearly antiquated and prejudicial.
On top of that there are a group of children in this family that have already lost their mother in unusual circumstances and will now lose out on any paternal bond that they may so desperately need at this time. At least when a person dies there is closure but for these kids the thoughts on their minds will always be “was it accidental death, desertion, murder ????” and will no doubt spend the rest of their lives taking second glances at any person that resembles their mother. They don’t need the added issues of dealing with their father being deported.
Immigration need to realize that they are dealing with families lives,emotions and psyches…..not just passport stamps.
Having survived, so far, the corruption of Immigration and its boards, I have come to the conclusion that Immigration does not care about expats families, lives, emotions and psyches? Indeed we are only here to make their lives better.
This decision would also be indicative of the fact that the case is no longer being investigated by our illustrious police force….WOW.
What a message to sedn to those involved with her disappearance.
Well said. I could not have said it better
This is Caymans third world Immigration we are talking about and not some developed country's. It has always done what it wants at the time regardless of common sense, human rights, or rules ,laws, or regulations. It will not change until the people change.
R. v. Tolson (1889) an English case decided that a person is presumed by the court to be dead if missing for 7 years and have not been heard from since. Since we must operate on English Common Law principles, how come some authorities just do what suit them? Immigration will never change they have an agenda on people from overseas.
Thats right Ms. Evans; make the difficult decisions even if they aren't popular. At the end of the day people will have to respect you for it since it was done with integrity.
Well done.
What's your definition of integrity?
I think that the Immigration Dept has overstepped its authority here. Unless they have solid proof of this man being an "undesirable" or that he has committed some crime worthy of deportation, can the Immigration Department explain their actions?
I could be wrong but I believe they are punishing the person on emotions. I don't know Ms. Anna, her husband or her family but I believe what has happened here is that the family of Ms. Anna believe (not proved) that her husband had something to do with her disappearance (as I recall from news reports they beat the man immediately after shewent missing putting him in the hospital) and it is in fact them that want this man removed from the island and because there is outrage and a huge outcry, the Immigration Department is trying to appease the family by removing him from the island.
From subsequent news reports the children are now living with their aunt which infers they are not in their father's care but he is still very much married to Ms. Anna.
Until she is declared dead he is still her legal husband. In order to get a divorce he would have to wait a certain amount of time and then get a divorce under the grounds of abandonment or he would have to have a court declare her legally dead to be considered a widower.
What integrity? Is it because he is Jamaica, it is right, or is it that he is found guilty of a crime against his wife in the courts?
It would be even better if Ms. Evans could make those difficult decisions within the law. As such, I'm struggling to understand how this was done with integrity. Perhaps you could enlighten us.
Done with third world integrity. Which is why you belive it was done well. Why should you have to care when they are not your kids or your family right?
This is strange I thought that is someone married a Caymanian, that they got status via thier spouse? If someone in this situation spouse passes away they get the boot? And what happens to the children do they have to leave the island as well and would they be Caymanian or Jamaican ?
Why all the thumbs down on all the comments? There maybe a few facts not being printed. Are the children his and Mrs Evans? Isn't he still married to Mrs Evans? He has very close ties to the missing Mrs Evans. Why would Immigration have him deported?
None of this makes any sense. Surprised no lawyer is trying to help him
The only thing strange is that this case is being made public. It happens all the time but people are afraid to speak up.
This just shows that the general situation there are some people or organizations in this country whose minds are dead set against Jamaicans. And if they can find the least loophole against people from that country they would boot them from Cayman at the" drop of a hat". you could have been here 40 years it does't matter to them. If he was an American, or Canadian or German or any other country's national he would not be treated like that.I hope this man might bring this to the attention of European court of Human rights or some similar international organizations. This just one of the many cases we hear about. How about the ones that we hear nothing about?
22:00 I find your comments humurous. If a person who is married to a Caymanian find themselves as a widow or widower, they get the boot.
Cayman have its laws just like Jamaica Canada and Usa Europe, or anywhere else in the world for that matter. So if you have your Caymanian spouse, not living with them, not treating them good, please tell me why should the spouse help you obtain status? No, absolutely no. and if there is children and you cannot pull up the responsibility of taking care of them and the Government is taking care of them, why should you obtain status. Furthermore if the government finds themself taking care of you the expatriate wife or husband and also the children, My comments is no. You need to go, not to lean on the government, because government should not have to take care of the expatriate partner and also the children.
I think a correct decision was made, and I do hope others will realize that they will not be allowed to get away with some things.
The guy has been here for 28yrs, in any country you would be given residency, but not in Cayman. Backwards as always.
Curious would things be the same for a loving husband or Wife of a Caymanian that lost thier spouse at no fault of thier own, they were weathy so they could support themselves without working are getting any kind of assistance..Would this person still be considered and Expat and do you think they should be asked to leave.
Has anyone noticed that the more bigoted the post, the worse the English?
What about the children, will they leave with the father?
He has an absolute cast iron right to stay consistent with his right to a family life and privacy under Art. 8 of the ECHR.
I am so glad you mentioned that. The poor man, he has been here since 1984 you can't tell him to leave and you certainly can't block an application for permanenet residency at least without giving reasons. this new constitution and bill of rights allow this, which means i believe that he could take this all the way to the privy council
Can he $$afford$$ those rights though?
I am sure we could all help him out if he couldn't!
This is Cayman. Where rules and regulations are just guidlines and there is no accountability to hamper the third world mentality that is Caymankind. Unless your Caymanian justice is a plane ride away.
"Cast iron" only applies to those with the $500,000 it would cost to assert the right successfully.