A Cayman Islands police constable was arrested this past weekend in connection with an on-going investigation being conducted by the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service.
Richard Hanna, who joined the RCIPS in mid-2005, has not been charged with any offence and has not appeared in court.
The Caymanian Compass has learned that Mr. Hanna had recently attempted to fly out of the country but was prevented from doing so by a stop-notice on his immigration record. It was unclear at press time where his arrest occurred.
According to police, Mr. Hanna was suspended from duty on Tuesday and has been released from custody on police bail.
Mr. Hanna, who is from Canada, has previously told the Compass that he was planning to leave the island this summer, and that he had set a retirement date from the RCIPS of 31 July.
When contacted on Wednesday about the arrest, Mr. Hanna refused to comment and directed reporters to his attorney Ailsa Williamson. Ms Williamson had no comment.
An article that appeared Tuesday in the Toronto Star newspaper said the police investigation in Cayman included allegations that Mr. Hanna was running a private business on government time. The story by reporter Dale Brazao also said that officials were looking into whether Mr. Hanna took rebate money available to foreign tourists for a trip he led to Toronto.
The claims made in the Star prompted local police to take the unusual step of identifying a person who has not been charged with a crime.
An RCIPS spokesperson said the article contained some factually incorrect information that was attributed to Police Inspector Adrian Barnett. Inspector Barnett denied making any statements to the Star about Mr. Hanna being charged and having a pending court date when the Compass spoke with him.
RCIPS refused to release any information about the investigation relating to Mr. Hanna citing the on-going probe.
The investigation into Mr. Hanna’s case is known about in the community. Police officials were questioned about it at a recent public meeting at Mary Miller Hall in George Town but again declined to give specifics.
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