MONTEGO BAY, St James — A $3-million vehicle deal now sits at the centre of a criminal case in St James after a promised Toyota Voxy bus never materialised and months of assurances reportedly led nowhere.

Mario Clarke appeared before Judge Natiesha Fairclough-Hylton in the St James Parish Court on Wednesday charged with fraudulent conversion.

According to court documents, the complainant handed Clarke $1.5 million some time last year to purchase a Toyota Voxy bus the two had previously discussed. Then in October 2025 the complainant sent another $1.5 million through a third party to cover importation costs and additional fees tied to the vehicle.

Clarke reportedly confirmed receiving the full $3 million. By November 2025 he told the complainant the vehicle had arrived in Jamaica but claimed there was an issue that would be resolved later.

That resolution never came.

The court heard that the complainant’s repeated attempts to collect either the bus, a refund, or even a clear update were unsuccessful. After months of waiting and no progress, the matter was reported to the police, leading to Clarke’s arrest and charge.

Attorney Henry McCurdy, appearing for Clarke, told the court that Hurricane Melissa had contributed to the delay. He said he had been advised that the vehicle is now in Jamaica and should be handed over to the complainant within two weeks.

But attorney Tamika Spencer-Anderson, who watched proceedings on behalf of the complainant, challenged that explanation, telling the court that the same story had been circulating long before the hurricane.

“The only thing that the accused man said was that there was an error on one of the documents. That is something that can be corrected in one day,” Spencer-Anderson said.

She argued that the complainant had spent nearly a year hearing the same promises while receiving neither the vehicle nor his money.

“This is about eight to nine months now since we’ve been hearing the same thing. We are almost a year in, and we cannot get back the money and we cannot get the vehicle. Many mediation attempts have been attempted and everything has not been fruitful and hence the complainant was forced,” Spencer-Anderson argued.

“He did not want to have the matter before the court but he believes that this was his only recourse at this point, after seeking many attempts at mediation with the complainant to the point that the accused man started hiding, and he could not find him at his Bogue Village address, and the police found him elsewhere,” the attorney added.

The court also heard from the clerk that the prosecution did not oppose bail. However, several pieces of evidence remain outstanding, including the arresting officer’s statement, a statement from the complainant’s friend who delivered a portion of the money, and text messages said to confirm the payments.

Judge Fairclough-Hylton granted Clarke bail in the sum of $750,000 with up to three sureties. As part of his bail conditions he is required to report to a specified police station on designated days, surrender his travel documents, and remain subject to a stop order at all ports.

He is scheduled to return to court May 20.

After paying $3 million for a Toyota Voxy bus like this one and not getting it, the complainant has taken the matter to court.