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Ex-WIPL duo hit with more charges

Published:Friday | February 11, 2022 | 12:11 AM

Former directors of West Indies Petroleum Limited (WIPL), Courtney Wilkinson and John Levy, have been slapped with fraud charges and are to appear in the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court on March 23 on allegations that they illegally accessed WIPL’s executives’ emails.

Investigators from the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s Counter-Terrorism and Organised Crime Branch charged the men on Thursday with unauthorised access to computer programme or data, conspiracy to gain unauthorised access, conspiracy to access with intent to commit or facilitate the commission of an offence, and conspiracy to unauthorised modification of computer programme or data.

Their co-accused, a technological specialist, Winston Henry, 36, was arrested on Monday and similarly charged.

Fifty-seven-year-old Wilkinson, who is the owner of Alcor Windows and Doors, and 59-year-old Levy, Ecomarine Limited boss, as well as Henry, have been released on $400,000 station bail.

Allegations are that the businessmen – who were at the time directors of WIPL – gained unauthorised access to the emails of the company’s chief executive officer and three other senior WIP staff members in February of last year.

It is alleged that the men committed the crime with Henry’s help.

DENY ALLEGATIONS

In the meantime, attorney-at-law Christopher Townsend, who is representing the businessmen, said his clients deny the allegations and look forward to their day in court.

Levy and his wife were last December slapped with fraud charges following allegations that they had transferred a motor truck to a company in which he and his wife, Donna, are directors and shareholders, two days after he was asked to step down from his post as director of WIPL.

The two ex-directors have been embroiled in a legal tussle with the company since they parted ways.

tanesha.mundle@gleanerjm.com