ROY BEEHARRY, the man released from police detention recently on the orders of the Attorney General, Mr. Anthony Tissa Fernando, has surprisingly been re-arrested and is currently being detained at Montagne Posee prison. Apparently the Attorney General's reason for initially releasing Beeharry was the fact that his case is similar to the case of Marie-Nanette Julie. Marie Nanette Julie is the Air Seychelles Stewardess who was convicted of drug trafficking and sentenced to 8 years imprisonment last year. However, she appealed to the Court of Appeal against both her conviction and sentence and her appeal was successful. The Court of Appeal agreed with her lawyer, Mr. Anthony Juliette, that there was no evidence of “exclusivity of possession”, something, which is absolutely necessary before the Prosecution can secure a conviction on drug charges.
In the case of Julie, the drugs were found in a wardrobe, which had no lock and the evidence showed that several persons occupy the house where the drugs were found. The evidence also showed that it was Julie's brother who had alerted the police about the presence of the drugs in the wardrobe and that Julie was not on good terms with her brother. The Attorney General had justified his decision purely on the basis that the facts of Julie's case is very similar to that of Beeharry and as such it would be difficult to get a conviction. However, that decision has ostensibly upset some powerful people in government and rumour has it that telephone conversations between a senior staff of the Attorney General's Chambers and a very powerful politician, has caused the Attorney General to be over-ruled and Beeharry to be re-arrested. It is to be remembered that Beeharry has always protested his innocence alleging that the police planted the drugs in his house in his absence.
Apparently, the contract of the Attorney General is supposed to come to an end in December 2008, and since he is yet to apply for citizenship, he may be ordered by the powers that be to pack up his bags and go back to Sri Lanka. Fernando has been in Seychelles since around 1991 and both his daughters have Seychellois citizenship. Fernando, unlike Judge Perera and Judge Karunakaran, has, surprisingly until now, refused to apply for Seychellois citizenship. It is not a secret that a senior member of his Chambers, who incidentally has the right political connection, is clearly after his job. By the looks of things, Fernando may very well find himself without a job come December unless he changes tact and play his cards right.