THIS STORY HAS BEEN UPDATED HERE

http://youtu.be/F1LMOmIESlQ

2.30pm UPDATE: Jean Rony Jean-Charles has arrived at court this afternoon for his hearing.

By AVA TURNQUEST

Tribune Chief Reporter

aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMAS-born Jean Rony Jean-Charles was sensationally arrested and taken to the Carmichael Road Detention Centre having returned to the country on a court-ordered and state-issued travel document this weekend.

His arrest follows an emergency stay of Supreme Court Justice Gregory Hilton’s landmark ruling ordering his return, which Justice Hilton reportedly granted while Mr Jean-Charles was in the air travelling back to The Bahamas from Haiti.

Mr Jean-Charles travelled to the country on a Flamingo Air flight from Cap-Haïtien, Haiti, which landed around 3pm.

To get to Cap-Haïtien, Mr Jean-Charles travelled from Port-de-Paix on the back of a moped. A journey that took some nine hours to complete, according to his lead attorney Fred Smith, QC.

In Nassau, Mr Jean-Charles was immediately stopped by immigration officers and detained for nearly two hours before he was taken to a bus and driven to the Carmichael Road Detention Centre (CRDC).

His attorney Crispin Hall Jr was present at the airport; however, Mr Hall Jr said he was not allowed to speak to Mr Jean-Charles and was told by immigration officials he would have to see him at the CRDC.

At the airport, The Tribune observed Minister of Immigration Brent Symonette shortly after 4pm, who declined comment at the time.

While this newspaper was waiting outside the airport for Mr Jean-Charles to be escorted out, immigration officers attempted to conceal his exit.

Upon seeing The Tribune, the officers began to run to a waiting bus with Mr Jean-Charles in tow.

Mr Hall Jr shouted to his client not to sign any documents or speak to officials without the presence of an attorney as the bus sped away.

Once at the CRDC, Mr Hall Jr was initially denied access, but was later allowed to speak with Mr Jean-Charles for 15 minutes in the presence of an immigration officer, The Tribune was told.

Mr Hall Jr arrived at the facility at 5pm, but was not given clearance until 6.30pm.

“It was unbelievable,” said Mr Hall Jr, “the efforts and the extent they went to. It was obvious they knew we were present because they used evasive tactics trying to distract me while others went through the back to take him to the bus.

“When the call came through and I was able to speak with him, he was terrified, confused, shivering. He was cold and complained about how horrible, tough and arduous the ride was to the airport in Haiti. And how fearful he was after arriving, thinking he was a free man.

“He realised in the airport something was wrong because they kept him and were looking at his documents.”

Mr Hall Jr added: “But when they took him and arrested him and they forcefully pulled him by his shirt and shoulder, because he has an ailment in his legs it was painful to keep up with their pace. He was afraid, he said he didn’t know if someone was chasing after him to hurt him or what.

“He didn’t know who was the good guys and who were the bad guys. He said he didn’t know if they (immigration officers) were saving him from someone or taking him.”

Attorney General Carl Bethel confirmed to The Tribune on Saturday that he had requested the stay after he had  learned that Mr Jean-Charles’ landing was “imminent.”

Mr Bethel said Mr Jean-Charles’ homecoming broke an agreement he made with Mr Smith to argue a stay of the order before a judge at 3pm on Monday.

However, Mr Smith emphatically denies making such an agreement and maintains he advised officials he would continue to try to bring his client back at the earliest opportunity.

Mr Bethel, on Saturday, said: “Senior counsel (Fred Smith) and I agreed we would argue before a judge at 3pm after lunch. He decides to bring the man in knowing that we have an application and the time, and knowing that if he did what he did today (Saturday) it would have the effect of making government’s application futile.

“The court made a ruling staying its original order, the question of his detention or otherwise will be determined in court.”

Appeal

On Friday, the government filed an urgent appeal against Justice Hilton’s ruling, making its case that the administration of good governance could be significantly affected.

Among the grounds for appeal, it was stated that Justice Hilton was wrong in law and principle, and overreached his constitutional authority when he ordered the government to immediately issue a travel document for Mr Jean-Charles to allow him to return from Haiti to the Bahamas at the government’s expense, and to grant him legal status no later than 60 days after his return.

Legal counsel also requested Justice Hilton’s order be stayed pending the outcome of their appeal.

Email correspondence obtained by The Tribune purports to show that Mr Smith advised Mr Symonette and Immigration Director Clarence Russell of Mr Jean Charles’ return and flight details at 12.58pm on Saturday.

In an email, Mr Smith explains he was unable to give an earlier advisory as it had been very challenging to arrange transport for Mr Jean-Charles from the hillside slums of Port de Paix, to the airport in Cap-Haïtien.

According to the chain of emails, Mr Bethel notified Mr Smith at 1.58pm that Justice Hilton had ordered an emergency stay of his orders pending a full hearing and determination on the government’s application for the same.

Mr Bethel noted in the email, which was copied to Mr Symonette and several senior officials: “The Department of Immigration is to be so guided.”

Mr Bethel sent a dated and signed copy of the stay order at 2.54pm Saturday.

The ex-parte order states that upon hearing legal counsel, Mr Bethel and Franklyn Williams, orally and on the basis of grave urgency that “all further proceedings and the judgment in this action…be stayed pending the hearing and outcome of the application of a stay made by respondents and set down for a hearing on Monday.”

In response, Mr Smith argued the emergency stay could not be applied to an aspect of a judgment that had already been complied with, adding that he was surprised he was not called to participate in the hearing of the emergency stay.

Yesterday, Mr Smith said: “I am shocked that Mr Bethel is publicly sharing our private conversations especially when his version is inaccurate. I have respected our private lines of communication. As I said we had no such agreement. I’m sure if there had been such an agreement he would have communicated this in writing during our detailed email exchanges on Thursday and Friday regarding Jean Rony’s travel and documents.”

Mr Smith continued: “I am sure that if you ask him, Mr Bethel will confirm that he repeatedly asked me for undertakings that I would not seek to fly Jean Rony into the Bahamas on the travel document that his government issued and I repeatedly declined to do so. I was very clear throughout that I intended to continue my efforts to bring in Jean Rony.

“There was no confusion about that,” he added.