The Tribune

A former chief superintendent with the Royal Bahamas Police Force appeared in court in New York on Friday wearing leg shackles and handcuffs as he faced charges in a drug trafficking plot that has sent shockwaves through the political establishment and law enforcement sectors in The Bahamas.

Elvis Nathaniel Curtis, 51, who previously oversaw operations at major Bahamian airports, including Lynden Pindling International, and four others, are accused of facilitating the trafficking of cocaine to the US.

After shuffling into the court room, Curtis, who was dressed in a faded brown prison-issue top and trousers, appeared calm, listened attentively and briefly stood when his name was called.

After the 20-minute hearing, the case was adjourned until February.

The most incendiary allegations concern Curtis, who is accused of taking bribes in cocaine to facilitate the trafficking operation.

According to the indictment, unsealed in November last year, Curtis claimed a “high-ranking Bahamian politician” would assist in moving the drugs with Bahamian law enforcement officials in exchange for a US$2m payment. The politician was not identified.

Also accused as alleged cocaine traffickers are William Simeon, 52, Luis Fernando Orozco-Toro, 58, Ulrique Jean Baptiste, 53, and Lorielmo Steele-Pomare, 59.

Prosecutors allege the scheme, which ran from May 2021 to late 2024, involved paying off “corrupt” officials to allow conspirators to ship drugs to America.

US District Judge Gregory Woods was told the volume of material in the case was “voluminous” and that defence lawyers required additional time to review it.

All five defendants appeared before the court charged with cocaine importation conspiracy, possession and carrying of firearms, and firearms conspiracy.

The defendants entered the courtroom through a side door and sat in a row in the jury box, with Baptiste seated in the row behind. All wore leg shackles and had their hands cuffed in front of them throughout the hearing.

Prosecutor Jonathan Bodansky said the intention had been to set a trial date at Friday’s hearing because all evidence had already been turned over to the defence. However, since the last hearing in August, “additional” material had been disclosed.

Donna Newman, who represents Steele-Pomare — a Colombian national and the most recent defendant to be extradited to the US — said the material was “quite voluminous”.

It included “a lot of conversations in Spanish, not all of which have been translated”, she said.

She requested a date in late February, adding that even then she would be “under pressure” to complete her review.

Lawyers for the other defendants did not object. Benjamin Silverman, who represents Baptiste, said he would be “ready to proceed” after the next hearing.

Judge Woods scheduled the next conference for February 25, at which point he expects to set a trial date.

“Once I set a trial, you should expect it will be a firm trial date,” the judge said.

At least eight others are alleged to have been involved in the plot, though none has yet been arrested. They include Prince Albert Symonette, 52, a former RBPF sergeant whom prosecutors say “closely worked” with Curtis.

Both Curtis and Symonette are accused of taking a US$10,000 cash bribe in 2023 as a down payment for helping a future 600kg cocaine shipment pass through Nassau airport en route to the US.

The indictment also alleges that Simeon, a Bahamian citizen currently in custody, used several aliases, including “Romeo Russell” and “Dario Rolle”. He is accused of working “closely with certain corrupt RBPF officials and others to transport cocaine into The Bahamas” and then onward to the US.

Orozco-Toro, a Colombian national, is also alleged to have “worked closely with corrupt Bahamian government officials” in furtherance of the trafficking activities.

The hearing was the first since the guilty plea of Darrin Alexander Roker, 56, a former chief petty officer with the Royal Bahamas Defence Force.

Roker faces up to 20 years in prison when he is sentenced next year on January 21, after admitting one count of cocaine importation conspiracy.

Roker’s lawyer previously told The Tribune that the plea to a lesser offence ensured there was no minimum mandatory sentence.