…Magistrate orders return of his passport
On Tuesday, Former Permanent Secretary of The Ministry of the Presidency, Omar Shariff was released on $1M bail to ensure that he will return to court for his trial after he failed to comply with a production order contrary to Section 26 of the Anti-money Laundering Act.
Shariff and his reputed wife, Savatri are on trial before Senior Magistrate Fabayo Azore at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court.

The couple was charged on January 23, 2018 after they failed to comply with the production order issued by the Chief Justice, Yonette Cummings-Edwards, after a summons was served by the High Court to produce certain named documents to Assistant Police Commissioner, Sydney James within seven days. They pleaded not guilty and was released on self-bail.

During that hearing Magistrate Azore ordered the couple to report every other Monday to the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) and lodge their passport to the court.

When the matter was called on Tuesday, the couple’s attorney, Sanjeev Datadin made an application for Shariff passport to be returned to him.
The court was told that the accused was granted a scholarship to The Hugh Wooding Law School in Trinidad and Tobago and need his passport to travel.
This was met with no objections by Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU), prosecutor, Patrice Henry.

Magistrate Azore ordered that Shariff passport be returned to him and imposed $1M bail to ensure his return.
The matter was adjourned until September 17,2018 when Attorney Datadin is expected to make a no-case submission.
Omar Shariff was fired from the post of Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of the Presidency. The ministry said at the time that his services had been terminated with effect December 31, 2016.

Shariff, the subject of a probe into alleged financial crimes by SOCU, has denied such allegations but conceded that he has unsettled tax matters with the Guyana Revenue Authority in relation to the sale of phone credit.