A Trelawny accountant who was hired to procure performance bonds on behalf of Elegant Estates Limited has been charged with forgery and uttering forged documents.

According to a release, Goldston Cranston was arrested by the Major Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency (MOCA) on Monday January 10.

MOCA has disclosed that in 2017, the Housing Association of Jamaica (HAJ) engaged the Compliant Limited construction company for an apartment complex in the parish of St Ann. The project was subcontracted to Elegant Estates Limited, which were required to submit a performance bond in favour of the HAJ.

The release revealed that the director of Elegant Estates Limited, Garfield Daley, hired Cranston to procure two performance bonds on his behalf. One of the bonds was in the sum of $J16.4 million and the other totalled J$5.4 million.

On seeking to authenticate the bonds, the HAJ discovered that while the bond for the smaller sum was authentic, the performance bond for the larger amount was fraudulent.

The HAJ subsequently reported the matter to MOCA and an investigation was launched.

The investigation unearthed that Cranston fraudulently prepared the J$16.4M bond to deceive the HAJ.

Cranston was offered bail but is set to appear in the St Andrew Parish Court on January 25, 2022.