Opposition spokesman on Finance Julian Robinson is urging the Government to make public a forensic report conducted by financial and risk advisory firm Kroll in connection to fraud matters at Stocks and Securities Limited (SSL).

The more than $4 billion fraud which has affected more than 200 investors including Olympic icon Usain Bolt, was back in the news this week after Bolt said he has not been given an update on the investigation during an appearance on The Fix.

Robinson, while speaking during a press conference held by the Opposition on Thursday at Gordon House raised concerns surrounding an alleged leak of contents of the report to sections of the media.

“What is even more disturbing is that a confidential forensic report commissioned by the Government of Jamaica has been selectively leaked to a particular media house in an attempt to discredit what Mr Bolt said, which is that his money was invested in SSL and ripped off by SSL. So I’m calling for two things. One, is for the government to release that forensic report in its totality, not to continue this exercise of picking and choosing sections of the report and sending it to specific media houses, but to put the entire report on the table so that all Jamaicans can see what took place,” Robinson urged.

“The second thing is that the government must give us an update. What is the status of the investigations? We know that a file was provided to the DPP (Director of Public Prosecutions). We don’t know what the status of that is. That file has been there for months,” Robinson stated.

Continuing, Robinson said, “A couple of days ago, Usain Bolt, a global icon who has represented Jamaica with distinction, quite correctly raised concerns about the lack of transparency regarding the investigation into the SSL fraud matter. Since his comments, he has been met with a flurry of abusive comments on social media led by JLP supporters who are chastising him for quite correctly raising concerns about his hard-earned money”.
“Mr Bolt is one of hundreds of persons who were defrauded in SSL so he has a right to raise these questions. These are the same questions that not-so-well-known persons who were defrauded are also raising and the response cannot be to chastise him for doing so. He has been extremely responsible and restrained in not going public internationally with these issues because it would have a detrimental impact on the country and the perception of the investment climate in the country,” Robinson added.

The SSL scandal erupted in January 2023 when reports surfaced that billions of dollars, including investments from the track superstar, had gone missing from clients’ accounts. The revelation rocked the financial sector and triggered an investigation by law enforcement and the Financial Services Commission (FSC). Bolt’s impacted account reportedly held over US$12 million at the time.

READ: ‘I have to say something’: Having lost US millions in SSL scandal, Bolt now losing patience