PHILIPSBURG – The sentencing hearing of tattoo artist Rikinaldo Francisco Murray did not go according to plan on Wednesday afternoon because the 46-year old defendant lost it when he realized that he was also going to be sentenced on appeal by the Common Court of Justice. Murray kept interrupting the judge while she was reading the verdict. When he got up from his chair, guards entered the courtroom and took him back to the holding cell at the courthouse where he continued arguing even until after the guard locked the door on him. The appeals court upheld the verdict of…
Author: The Publisher
PHILIPSBURG – The Court in First Instance acquitted 24-year old Joel L. on Wednesday morning of stealing and fencing a car, in spite of the fact that the defendant failed to explain many details. The prosecutor demanded 26 days of imprisonment – the time the defendant spent in pretrial custody – and 100 hours of community service for fencing. On December 15 of last year, a man whose car was stolen two weeks earlier, spotted his vehicle driving in Dutch Quarter. He alerted the police and shortly afterwards, officers stopped the car and arrested the driver. Joel L. told the…
PHILIPSBURG – The Council of Ministers has approved the draft ordinance study financing. “It is the first legislation the ministry has produced since 10-10-10,” Minister Jorien Wuite (Education) said at Wednesdays’ Council of Ministers press briefing. Currently, the ministry is still working with the island ordinance and the study financing implementation decision. “It is completely outdated and reflects discrepancies in our policies,” the minister said. The draft ordinance covers all aspects of applying for, receiving and paying back study loans. “The overall goal is to regulate execution practices but the main objective has always been to afford young talented St.…
PHILIPSBURG – The Council of Ministers approved the advices for school repairs on Tuesday. Minister Jorien Wuite (Education) said on Wednesday that funds can now be made available for repairs to four schools. The Foundation secondary Education (SVOBE) gets $233,000; the Seventh Day Adventist School $288,000; the Catholic School Board $400,000 (for St. Dominic and the Sr. Marie Laurence School). The money is earmarked for emergency repairs to ensure proper preparation for the hurricane season, Wuite said. The focus will be on repairing doors, windows and roofs. A final report from the schools is expected in three months, following the…
PHILIPSBURG – Efforts are underway to officially install the St. Maarten national commission for Unesco, Minister Jorien Wuite (Education, Culture, Youth and Sport) said at Wednesday’s Council of Ministers press briefing. Names have been submitted to the Governor at the suggestion of Unesco-St. Maarten Secretary-General Marcellia Henry. The commission will consists of the minister, her secretary-general, the head of the Foreign Relations department plus experts in the fields of education and natural and social sciences, media and communication. There will also be youth representatives. The members are appointed for three years. “Once the commission is made official the first meeting…
PHILIPSBURG – A research team from the Naturalis Biodiversity Center in Leiden is in St. Maarten to conduct a study into the island’s mosquito-population. “The objective is to identify the number of various mosquito-species,” Minister Emil Lee (Public Health) sad during Wednesday’s Council of Ministers press briefing. Specific diseases are carried by specific species, the minister said. “Understanding which mosquitoes are on the island gives us a better idea in terms of the diseases the population is at risk for.” Minister Lee met with the Naturalis-team – consisting of students and supervisors. “That was also an opportunity to talk about…
PHILIPSBURG – “The difficulties in getting a simple memorandum of understanding executed about cooperation between the hospitals on the Dutch and the French side of the island “highlights some of the challenges of cooperation between the two countries,” Minister Emil Lee (Public Health) said at Wednesday’s Council of Ministers press briefing. The minister met with representatives of the ARS – Agence Régional de Santé – and its regional director for St. Barths, Saint Martin and Guadeloupe Valérie Denux to discuss the agreement. “It was a positive meeting with an assurance from the new director to take the results of our…
PHILIPSBURG – The cyber attack that paralyzed the government organization for several days on Monday, April 2, occurred because the license for the anti-virus software had expired, Prime Minister Leona Marlin-Romeo said on Wednesday during a meeting of the Central Committee of Parliament. “It has been paid but during the attack it was not up and running,” the Prime Minister admitted. “In the meantime, several measures have been taken to limit the risks of new cyber attacks. The IT-department has blocked access to certain websites.” While the Prime Minister did not specify those websites it stands to reason that the…
PHILIPSBURG – The Court in First Instance sentenced Kareem Munaf Prince on Wednesday for an attempt to rape his former girlfriend on August 21 of last year, stealing a Wifibox from her home and threatening her with death. The 21-year old defendant has mental health issues and he was not in court; he is currently in his native Guyana and his attorney Safira Ibrahim could not say when he would come back to the island. The court sentenced Prince to 365 days of imprisonment, with 259 days suspended and 3 years of probation. Prince spent the unconditional part of the…
PHILIPSBURG – The Ministry of Public Housing, Urban Planning, Environment and Infrastructure (VROMI) does not spend a word on the situation at the dump in the draft 2018 budget. Under a heading that addresses the quality of life, the ministry only mentions plans for the development of a waste-to-energy plant, developing and implementing a recycling program and promoting sustainable energy. Furthermore, in a list of risks, the ministry notes that the management contract for the landfill has to be “timely extended or tendered again” while Minister Emil Lee said in February that the contract with the management company actually was…
