In a landmark ruling delivered on June 16, High Court Justice Rene Williams has dealt a major blow to the Office of National Drug and Money Laundering Control Policy (ONDCP), dismissing its bid to permanently forfeit more than EC$172,700 seized from local bodybuilder Kenroy Christian. The judge’s decision centered on the agency’s fundamental failure to meet its legal burden by producing admissible evidence to back up its claims that the seized funds were tied to criminal activity.
The case stretches back nearly four years, when ONDCP officials first seized the sum of EC$172,736.65 from Christian. Following the seizure, the agency launched formal proceedings to request that the funds be permanently forfeited to the state, a standard process under the country’s anti-money laundering regulatory framework. But from the earliest stages of litigation, the case was plagued by procedural missteps on the part of the ONDCP.
Justice Williams’ ruling highlighted that the agency repeatedly failed to comply with binding case management orders that required it to file formal witness statements and disclose all evidence to the defense ahead of the scheduled trial. By the time the case reached its final hearing, the ONDCP had no admissible witness testimony or documentary evidence to present before the court to support its core allegation: that the seized funds were either proceeds of criminal conduct or intended to be used for unlawful purposes, as required to grant a forfeiture order under anti-money laundering legislation.
In her written judgment, Justice Williams emphasized that courts cannot base rulings on unproven assertions included in legal pleadings or attorney arguments alone. Under the law, the onus remains squarely on the state agency seeking forfeiture to prove its case through credible, properly presented evidence. Without any such evidence on the record, the judge found that the ONDCP had fallen far short of meeting the required legal standard to justify permanent confiscation. The dismissal of the application means the seized funds will now be returned to Christian, bringing a close to a four-year legal battle that exposed significant procedural gaps in the ONDCP’s case handling.