Two men told a Grand Court jury on Wednesday that they gave money to Lyndon Leathan Martin because he told them it was needed for fees in connection with permanent residence applications.
Martin, an MLA from 2000-2005, is charged with five counts of obtaining property by deception and four counts involving documents.
The first witness, Mr. Clint Adolphus Myrie, said he is Caymanian and his wife was from Guyana. They had married in 2000 and every three months he had to go to get her an extension from the Immigration Department.
He said in early 2005 he had a conversation with Mr. Martin, who told him he had been married so long he shouldn’t have to be doing that. Mr. Martin said he could help fix the papers.
When he went to Martin’s home, he was given a paper to fill out and take back with documents such as the marriage licence and passports.
Weeks later he got a phone call from Martin saying the papers required a fee of $50. He met Martin and gave him a $100 bill, which was the smallest he had. Martin told him there were other fees for processing the papers.
Later he got the papers back because the couple wanted to travel off island. After he returned, he met up with Martin at a gas station. Martin said he would need the papers back so he could continue the work.
Some time later, Martin told him there was a further processing, so it would be $250. He took the money to Martin’s house a couple of days later and gave it to him. He did not get a receipt.
Eventually he spoke to Martin again, who said it’s in the final processing and there was a final fee of $475.
Crown Counsel John Masters asked if Martin ever arranged that permanent residence. Mr. Myrie said no. Asked if ever got his money back, he said no.
Asked if his wife ever got residence, he said yes and indicated they had arranged it themselves. He thought the fee was $650.
Defence Attorney Ben Tonner then questioned the witness. In response, Mr. Myrie said he and Martin grew up together in Cayman Brac and went to school together.
‘In 2005 were you good friends?’ Mr. Tonner asked.
‘We’re still good friends up to now,’ Mr. Myrie answered. Later he added, ‘I still trust him, sir.’
He agreed that while Martin was an MLA he was based in Cayman Brac. Asked if he knew Martin had a restaurant on the Brac, Mr. Myrie said he heard about it.
Mr. Tonner asked if he had spoken to Martin since his arrest in May 2006. Mr. Myrie said lots of times, but Martin had told him they mustn’t get into any of the case.
The Crown’s second witness was Mr. Harold Spence. He described himself as a Jamaican national living in Cayman 11 years and married to a Caymanian.
In mid-2005 he was considering an application for Caymanian status or permanent residence. ‘I’m not very agile in that area, so I thought of a few persons who could guide me through it.’ He knew Martin, Martin knew him ‘and he is approachable,’ Mr. Spence explained.
He said Martin gave him directions and he obtained the photos and reports as instructed. He made contact again and Martin promised to assist and he handed over his material.
He said both of them were busy. When they did connect, Martin reviewed his application and told him to obtain a cheque for $500 payable to the Cayman Islands Government.
After he gave him the bank draft, time passed and he made several attempts to contact Martin. After a while he never bothered to call.
Mr. Spence said he did not get his money back; he did not get permanent residence. He did not authorise Mr. Martin to use the money for any other purpose.
Questioned by Mr. Tonner, the witness said Martin was still an MLA when they spoke – ‘he was active politically, he was campaigning.’
Shown an application form, he agreed that the signature at the end did bear a resemblance to his. He was inclined not to agree that he had approved the information on the form. As a mechanic, ‘Most of the time we met I was covered in dirt and grease.’ Because he trusted Mr. Martin ‘I might have signed it without reading it.’
Mr. Spence said he did not know that the bank draft would expire in six months; after looking at it, he agreed that was what it said.
He said he never made a complaint about Mr. Martin. He didn’t need to and they both enjoyed a busy lifestyle. Until the police contacted him, he did not know about Mr. Martin’s situation.
Justice Paulette Williams is presiding.
Martin
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