PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, (CMC) — Jamaican-born British King’s Counsel Vincent Nelson has lost an appeal against his conviction and sentence for conspiracy to commit corruption and money laundering.

The Court of Appeal, comprising Justices Nolan Bereaux, James Aboud, and Geoffrey Henderson, affirmed an earlier decision by Justice Mark Mohammed, who had refused to extend the time for Nelson to file his appeal.

In delivering the panel’s decision on Monday, Justice Henderson said “the Court is of the opinion, therefore, that no satisfactory or convincing reasons have been proffered which justify the lengthy delay in this case”.

Nelson was convicted on June 4, 2019, after pleading guilty to conspiring with former Attorney General Anand Ramlogan and attorney Gerald Ramdeen to corruptly give rewards to Ramlogan, and to conspire to launder money.

He was subsequently sentenced on March 2, 2020, by then-High Court Judge Malcolm Holdip to pay a fine of TT$2.25 million (approximately US$331,000) or, in default, face three years of hard labour. Nelson’s application for leave to appeal was filed significantly out of time on October 31, 2023.

He had argued in his appeal that the circumstances leading to his plea agreement constituted an abuse of process and executive power, and a breach of a promise not to prosecute.

He alleged that the then attorney general, Faris Al-Rawi, had obtained a notarised statement from him through “improper inducements” that included promises of non-prosecution, non-disclosure of his statement, payment of outstanding fees, and an indemnity for any breach of the indemnity agreement.

Nelson also claimed he was threatened with the withholding of his outstanding fees if he did not provide the statement.

In its ruling the Appeal Court said that the expectation that Nelson would receive a pardon one month after sentence does not account for a delay of three years after it had become apparent that a pardon was not forthcoming:

“Further, this court is of the view that a discontinuation of proceedings against Mr Ramdeen and Mr Ramlogan does not bolster the applicant’s explanation for the delay in making his application.”

The court also noted the safeguards within the Criminal Procedure (Plea Discussion and Plea Agreement) Act, 2017, designed to ensure that plea agreements are voluntary and free from improper inducements.

In October 2022, the Director of Public Prosecutions Roger Gaspard discontinued the corruption case against Ramlogan and Ramdeen due to Nelson’s refusal to testify while his lawsuit and appeal remain unresolved.

In 2024, Nelson said he was seeking TT$96 million in a civil claim for compensation for an alleged breach of an indemnity agreement to protect him from prosecution.