MOCA arrests $8 million fraud suspect at NMIA
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The article describes MOCA arrests and charges tied to an alleged $8 million fraud involving HEART Trust NTA, including money laundering and conspiracy to defraud. It is directly about Jamaican government accountability and anti-corruption enforcement actions.
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The Major Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency (MOCA) on Tuesday arrested and charged 36-year-old Ricardo Golden, who the law enforcement agency said is a key suspect in an ongoing investigation into an alleged $8 million fraud at the HEART Trust NTA, as he attempted to board a flight at Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston
According to Major Basil Jarrett, Director of Communications at MOCA, Golden is now the fifth person to be charged in connection with the investigation that has been ongoing since 2018.
The other people charged to date are Anna-Kay Phinn-Tyrell and her husband Michael Tyrell, former employees at the HEART Trust, as well as Tasha Bucknor and Shamar Bell, all of whom are presently before the courts.
MOCA said that all five are alleged to have been part of a conspiracy to fraudulently move money from the HEART Trust NTA to the accounts of people who were neither employees nor contracted workers of the entity.
“Golden was picked up by MOCA agents after he failed to report to the agency for questioning as instructed. He was charged with receiving stolen property, conspiracy to defraud and money-laundering and is scheduled to appear in court later this week,” MOCA said in a news release Tuesday afternoon.
Major Jarrett praised the NMIA police for their support in carrying out Tuesday’s operations, and lauded the team for their swift and professional conduct. He is also reminding people to continue to report instances of corruption and organized crime to MOCA’s newly created tip hotline, 888-MOCA-TIP.
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