KINGSTON, Jamaica — Embattled former Education Minister Ruel Reid and President of the Caribbean Maritime University Professor Fritz Pinnock this morning filed an application in the Supreme Court for a judicial review against the Financial Investigation Division (FID) in respect of the charges brought against them in the Corporate Area Parish Court some two weeks ago.

The application seeks to quash the charges brought by the FID on the basis that the FID had no power to charge anyone under the Act as they are purely an investigative body and have no jurisdiction to lay charges.

“The entire proceedings that they initiated against the applicants are a nullity, we are seeking to have the charges quashed on the basis that the FID exceeded its jurisdiction,” Attorney-at-law Hugh Wildman told members of the media at a press conference earlier today.

The former Education Minister, his wife Sharen and daughter Sharelle, Professor Pinnock as well as Councillor Kim Brown-Lawrence ( Jamaica Labour Party, Brown’s Town Division, St Ann), were arrested and charged following  a multi-agency probe into allegations of corruption, fraud and misappropriation of public funds involving the Ministry of Education and the CMU.

All five have since been released on bail.

More information later.