The Tribune

By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Chief Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

NATIONAL Security Minister Wayne Munroe pledged on Friday to review the country’s bail monitoring protocols after it was revealed that a man accused of a triple murder remained on bail for months due to an alleged oversight.

Mr Munroe told reporters he became aware of the case on Friday morning, describing it as the latest example of people allegedly exploiting the system to avoid being monitored while on bail.

He claimed the issue is not new, revealing that when he first took office, he was informed that some people on bail deliberately committed minor offences, knowing they could be granted bail, to secure release without electronic monitoring conditions.

He said the problem stems from how release orders are processed. When someone already on bail is remanded for a new offence, the court’s release order may not always address the original offences for which they were previously bailed.

To address this, he said protocols were established between the Department of Public Prosecutions, the courts, and the Bahamas Department of Corrections.

However, he acknowledged that the system’s effectiveness needed to be reviewed following recent concerns.

He explained that if the court’s role is to grant bail for a specific offence while setting terms and ensuring compliance with conditions related to other offences the individual is not on bail for, the process should have already been addressed. He added that it would be necessary to determine if there was a failure in the protocol, identify where it occurred, and make the necessary corrections.