Cop denies $500 bribe charge

(CNS): A 28-year-old police officer made his first appearance in court Monday to face bribery charges under the country’s anti-corruption legislation. Elvis Ebanks from George Town is accused of extracting a $500 bribe from a Filipino national in exchange for not investigating how he came into possession of a phone that belonged to a third party.  Ebanks, who is now suspended from duty, has denied the allegations, claiming in a police interview that the money he reportedly took from the complainant was a loan. The officer was released from custody after his appearance in Summary Court and was bailed to appear before the Grand Court on 30 November.

According to the crown’s case, Ebanks took money from a man described as a “vulnerable victim”, who was foreign national on a work permit with a limited support network in Cayman, which was why he was selected.

Prosecuting counsel told the court that the incident took place earlier this month shortly after the owner of the missing phone discovered it was in the possession of the complainant. It is not clear if the phone was lost or stolen or how the complainant came by it but when he was asked by PC Ebanks, who answered the report, to hand over the phone, he did so without question. The original owner then told PC Ebanks that, with his phone returned to him, he had no desire to take the matter any further.

However, the crown says that PC Ebanks put the Filipino national into the police car and drove away without making an arrest. The prosecuting counsel claims the officer, in an attempt to intimidate his victim, drove him around telling him that he could be in a lot of trouble over the phone and could go to jail for more than ten years, before he asked him for money.

The victim is alleged to have handed over some $140 in cash and arranged to meet PC Ebanks on another occasion to pay him a total of $500. However, after PC Ebanks dropped the victim home, the man called the police and reported the incident.

When Ebanks made contact with his alleged victim during a call, which the court heard was recorded, the men arranged to meet at Countryside Village, where the crown said the meeting was caught on CCTV. After the cash was said to have been handed over by the bribery victim, officers from the RCIPS blocked the exit from the shopping centre and arrested PC Ebanks as he attempted to leave.