IRO, Pentecostal heads wash hands of $28m pastor

RIA CHAITRAM and JENSEN LA VENDE

Heads of both the Inter-Religious Organisation (IRO) and the Pentecostal Assemblies of the West Indies (PAWI) have washed their hands of pastor Vinworth Dayal, who on Old Year’s Day, brought $28 million in paper $100 bills to the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago (CBTT) seeking to change them into the legal polymer notes.

Contacted for comment on the issue, IRO head, Rev Dr Knolly Clarke, said when religious bodies engage in acts like this, it has the tendency to cast a negative light on all religious entities. He said, “We are not saying that he (Pastor Dayal) has done something wrong or right. We really do not know as yet where the funds came from. But when something like this happens, people will think we are frauds and that the religious community is not upholding its integrity.”

Clarke added, “This church is not under the IRO and it will have to answer in accordance with the laws of TT. The IRO will not be getting involved.” He also explained, “Churches usually have audits, and money in the RC (Roman Catholic), Presbyterian and Anglican churches is handled by the parishes, not the pastors or priests.”

$M IN 29 BOXES

The church Dr Clarke was referring to is the Third Exodus Assembly Church in Longdenville, whose leader, Pastor Dayal, was said to have visited the CBTT five minutes before close of business hours on December 31, and promised to return with the monies. He eventually showed up with 29 copy paper boxes containing in total, the 28 million in $100 bills.

Pastor Dayal was accompanied by his son, his daughter-in-law and two attorneys. Officers of the Financial Intelligence Bureau (FIB) said the man promised to come in with the cash days before December 31, and was repeatedly visiting the CBTT promising to do so. The cash was seized by officers of the FIB who are working with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU). Sgt Seecharan of the FIB is spearheading investigations.

Pastor Dayal has not been arrested even as police continue to investigate how he came into possession of the cash. As part of the probe, police sources said, the pastor will have to explain his source of fund. The pastor’s lawyer, in a pre-action protocol letter sent to the CBTT, said the $28 million came from tithes.

Police yesterday raided a house in Gulf View, La Romaine, said to be the home of one of Pastor Dayal’s relatives, in search of evidence, including documents, relevant to their probe into the $28 m.

Rev Dr Clarke’s sentiments were echoed and reinforced by PAWI member, Rev Don Hamilton, who is also Senior Pastor at the Faith, Hope & Love Centre. Rev Hamilton said there is need for more accountability with money.

He said, “While this issue has showed churches and religious institutions in a negative light, it could also be used in a positive way. We should learn from this and be more accountable for the tithes paid to the church. The churches should employ best practices when it comes to handling money.”

Hamilton said Pastor Dayal’s church is in now way affiliated with PAWI and he added that member churches of PAWI have strict mechanisms in place to ensure accountability and transparency.

CHURCH LOCKED TIGHT

On Thursday morning, Newsday visited Pastor Dayal’s church in Depot Road, Longdenville where the front gates were locked and there were no signs of anyone at the compound. In addition, there was an iron barricade at the entrance on Depot Road, and no other access to the building. The only evidence that someone might have been there was a blue van parked near a shed.

A nearby resident, who wished not to be named, said there was always a security guard present at the church, even when it was locked up. He said, “If you call out to the guard, he should be able to assist you.” Newsday tried to get the guard’s attention but was unsuccessful, even with the aid of Longdenville police officers who were passing by on a patrol.

Investigators were on Thursday waiting for a magistrate to sign off on a provisional seizure order so they could continue to impound the $28 million while investigations were continuing. The money was seized under Section 38 of the Proceeds of Crime act.

The act says police would be able to detain the cash for a maximum time of 96 hours if it is believed to be proceeds from a criminal act or is intended to be used to commit a criminal offence. Investigators would be able to hold the cash for longer, if an order to do so is signed off by a magistrate.

On December 5, National Security Minister Stuart Young announced that the polymer $100 bill will replace the paper notes on January 1, in an initiative to help fight money laundering and other illicit activities. Young said that one person, who claimed to be a barber, showed up at a bank with $1 million in old $100 notes seeking to exchange them for the polymer ones. He added that since the new notes were made available, several unusual transactions were flagged.

The FIU claimed that in 2019, it had flagged 429 suspicious transactions, amounting to $749,024,557. In an emailed response to Newsday on December 14, acting head of FIU, Nigel Stoddard said there was an increase in money laundering activities in the third quarter last year compared to the same period in 2018. In 2018, there were 237 reports and 247 in 2017. The second highest figure was 300 reports in the last quarter of 2018; the figure was 179 in 2017.

FIB sources said that the $28m, impounded on Tuesday (Old Year’s Day) is the largest local currency figure ever seized by police.