British Virgin Islands Premier Andrew Fahie and Oleanvine Maynard, Managing Director of BVI's Port Authority, appeared in a Miami court on Friday.
The premier of the British Virgin Islands appeared in a Miami courtroom on Friday after being accused of money laundering and conspiring to import cocaine.
Andrew Fahie, 51, was arrested on Thursday at a Miami airport along with the managing director of the territory's Ports Authority, Oleanvine Maynard.
The hearing coincided with Friday's release of a report commissioned by Queen Elizabeth's representative in the British Virgin Islands which concluded that the territory's constitution and elected government should be suspended due to concerns about dishonest governance.
Mr. Fahie and Mrs. Maynard, dressed in what appeared to be prison uniforms, appeared via Zoom in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida on Friday.
Judge Jonathan Goodman scheduled a pre-trial detention hearing for next Wednesday and a preliminary hearing for May 13.
According to the complaint, a DEA informant claimed in meetings with Mr. Fahie, Mrs Maynard and her son Kadeem Maynard to be a cartel member looking to move thousands of kilograms of Colombian cocaine through the territory's Tortola island and eventually to the United States.
Kadeem Maynard was arrested at another location in the US on Thursday.
It's alleged that Premier Fahie requested an upfront payment of US$500,000 to let cocaine slip through the British Virgin Islands en route to Miami and New York.
Humiliated
BVI's Opposition Leader Marlon Penn has said he counts himself among locals surprised and humiliated by reports of the arrest of Premier Fahie and Mrs Maynard.
He expressed the sentiments in a statement issued to the media on Friday.
The opposition leader called for citizens to unite to address what he described as daunting challenges ahead.
In a national broadcast on Thursday night, Dr. Natalio D. Wheatley, the acting premier of the British Virgin Islands, said Mr. Fahie and Mrs Maynard should be afforded due process.
He said he was aware that other government ministers have spoken with the premier and port director.
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