Norman Peart, the former longtime business manager of track icon Usain Bolt, was never a suspect in the disappearance of almost US$13 million from his account at Stocks and Securities Limited (SSL).

In a release Friday, the Financial Investigations Division (FID) said, “Of note, contrary to reports in some public spaces, Mr Norman Peart cooperated with investigators. He was not considered a suspect nor was he treated as such”.

On January 27, Bolt countered a claim made by Peart that their separation was amicable, sparking speculation that this could be linked to the fraud at SSL.

“He was fired, that’s pretty much all I have to say,” Bolt told OBSERVER ONLINE. “It wasn’t amicable… he was fired.”

READ: ‘He was fired’: Bolt says split with longtime manager Peart was not amicable

Peart, Bolt’s business manager of many years, had helped to mentor and guide the eight-time Olympic champion through most of his career in track and field.

He had claimed, in an earlier interview that he and Bolt had “parted company amicably in late 2022”.

But with Bolt’s statement that he had been fired, and e-mail which surfaced, purportedly from Peart to Jean-Ann Panton, the woman charged this morning in connection with the multi-billion dollar fraud, authorising the transfer of monies from Bolt’s account, the speculation grew.

READ: Confessed SSL fraudster Jean Ann Panton charged

However, investigators have since determined that the email were fraudulent, with a fictitious address, and were not sent by Peart.

The management of SSL has also confirmed that a representative of Bolt visited its offices and indicated that Panton had turned up at their offices to confess that she had falsified statements provided to them, had stolen money from them and other SSL clients, and was requesting help from Bolt’s management team to repay the clients whose funds she had stolen.