More arrests are likely coming over the SSL scandal, which is turning out to be much bigger than we originally thought!

The Financial Investigations Division gave us a big update on the SSL fraud investigation on Friday.  The gist of it is that… things are way worse than we originally thought.

According to the FID, the number of affected accounts is now up to 70!  That’s way more than the 40 initially reported. And, investigators have also uncovered MULTIPLE fraud schemes at the company, for a grand total of US$10 million defrauded over a decade!

Since the investigation started in January, the FID has been working with the FBI and a forensic accounting and investigation firm, Kroll, from the UK.  They’ve been pulling on every loose thread, trying to unravel exactly what happened and how.

According to the statement, investigators found “an entrenched culture of gross mismanagement dating back well over a decade”. 

Finance Minister, Dr Nigel Clarke pointed out that had SSL been dissolved like some of the directors wanted, the level of fraud and the multiple schemes wouldn’t have been discovered.

So far, Usain Bolt’s former wealth advisor, Jean-Ann Panton, has been the only person arrested, but the FID said that before her next court date in December, more people will be arrested. 

Another big update came from Finance Minister Dr. Nigel Clarke.  He announced that the Government will be covering some operational expenses at SSL temporarily, to the tune of roughly J$15 million a month.  And when he says the government will be paying, he really means us taxpayers, because the government gets most of its money from us.  

Of course, this has gotten a lot of backlash, because why should taxpayers pay SSL employees’ salaries?  Let me know in the comments how you feel about that!

Now according to Clarke, SSL currently has 22 employees.  Their total monthly wage bill is $9.5 million, plus there’s another $5 million in other operating expenses plus the one-off legal fees. YIKES!

But the Finance Minister said the Government is pretty much between a rock and a hard place.

See, SSL employees pulled a sick-out recently.  They all refused to go to work because they were not paid for August. But investigators need the employees to be at work so they can continue the investigation.  So that’s why the Government is stepping in to cover the expenses. 

In a Twitter Spaces Town Hall on Friday, Dr Clarke said that if they didn’t step in, the government risked compromising the investigation. 

And to the point he made about whether it’s the Central Government or the Financial Services Commission that will pay, the Minister said more than likely, it’ll be the FSC. 

He said the commission has enough cash in reserves to cover SSL’s monthly expenses, but they’re making checks to make sure.

Dr Clarke also pointed out that the coverage is conditional. SSL still has some assets and receivables that can be used to cover the salaries, etc. but those might take some time to sell or recover. 

In the meantime, SSL clients are still in limbo. Their funds haven’t been released yet because the investigation is still ongoing. 

The Government promised to “leave no stone unturned” and to follow the money wherever it led, and as I said earlier, investigators have been going over everything with a fine tooth comb.

So, it’s just a matter of how long the investigation will take and how long the Government will have to foot the bill to pay SSL’s staff.

And that’s the bottom line.