Police probing criminal complaint against Cornerstone director
THE police have confirmed that an investigation has started into a written complaint lodged by a former business partner of a director of Cornerstone United Holdings Jamaica Ltd (CUHJL), who is seeking to press criminal charges in a matter involving his investment of US$500,000 in an entity used to start the company.
An official of the Counter-Terrorism and Organized Crime Investigation Branch (C-TOC) told the Jamaica Observer on Saturday that the complaint and request to charge was filed on Thursday by businessman Robert Smith, in respect of a transaction he said was effected almost 10 years ago.
The Sunday Observer has since obtained a copy of the allegations submitted to C-TOC, but investigators refused to comment on the claims made.
“We will be proceeding with this investigation as per request and if criminal charges are to be laid, then they will be,” a police spokesman said on Saturday while declining to go into further detail.
Only recently, Smith filed a lawsuit against CUHJL and its sister set-up Cornerstone Financial Holdings Ltd (CFHL), and six of the organisations’ directors over the ownership of ordinary shares.
Months before, Sagicor Investments had also filed a lawsuit against CFHL in the Supreme Court of Barbados in which it is seeking US$44 million in connection with two rights issues.
The suit filed by Smith in the Supreme Court seeks the court’s declaration that he is the owner of 850 ordinary shares in CUHJL and CFHL combined.
He is also seeking damages for what he called a breach of trust, while suggesting that the value of the shares was diluted following rights issues by Cornerstone in 2020 and 2021.