The Tribune

FNM leader Michael Pintard has urged Commissioner of Police Shanta Knowles to widen the investigation surrounding drug trafficker Jonathan Eric Gardiner, saying new information raises serious questions about money laundering, beneficial ownership disclosures and whether corporate structures were used to conceal control of funds.

In a follow-up letter to the commissioner, Mr Pintard said evidence now suggests a possible gap between Top Notch Builders’ corporate filings and the apparent control of its bank accounts.

He said there are credible indications that Gardiner, who is not reflected in the company’s corporate filings, may have had direct access to and control over the company’s bank accounts, including the withdrawal of significant sums.

Mr Pintard said that disconnect is significant because a mismatch between recorded ownership and actual control of funds could point to the use of corporate entities to hide the identity of the true controlling party.

The letter comes after Gardiner, also known as “Player”, filed documents in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York saying $20,000 of the $30,000 in cash he had when his plane crashed on May 12 had been withdrawn from a Top Notch Builders bank account the day before.

In those filings, Gardiner and his attorneys described the account as his “business bank account”. A bank slip filed in court claimed to show the withdrawal came from Top Notch Builders’ account at Bank of The Bahamas’ JFK Drive branch.

Mr Pintard told the commissioner that the police investigation should include a forensic review of Top Notch Builders’ banking relationships and all accounts held by its subsidiaries, affiliates or related entities.

He said investigators should identify all authorised signatories on those accounts over time, determine when such authority was granted or revoked and examine how the accounts were actually used.

He also urged police, working with commercial banks, financial intelligence authorities and regulators, to obtain and analyse Know Your Customer records, due diligence files and beneficial ownership declarations submitted when the accounts were opened and during later reviews.

Mr Pintard said those records would help determine whether anyone not listed in corporate filings was recorded by financial institutions as a beneficial owner, signatory or person exercising effective control over the accounts.

He said any difference between bank KYC records and filings held by the Registrar General would be a serious concern requiring careful investigation.

The FNM leader also called for investigators to examine the volume, frequency and nature of transactions in the accounts, including large cash withdrawals or deposits, transfers between Top Notch Builders and related entities, and any transaction patterns inconsistent with the company’s stated commercial activity.

He said police should trace the flow of funds between Top Notch Builders and related companies, including entities involved in construction or development projects linked to the government.

Mr Pintard said investigators should determine whether those companies operated as independent businesses or functioned as conduits for moving funds within a broader financial structure.

He said particular attention should be paid to the relationship between Top Notch Builders and entities tied to public projects, including Carmichael Village Project Development Ltd, a special purpose vehicle established by the government.

Mr Pintard said the SPV was established by the same law firm that served as the registered agent for Top Notch Builders.

He urged investigators to examine financial flows between those entities and public sector counterparts, including payments under government contracts, to determine whether funds moved through layers of corporate entities in a way that concealed or obscured their origin.

The letter also calls for scrutiny of whether public funds were commingled with private financial flows through special purpose vehicles, subsidiaries or related corporate arrangements.

“The matters now before the authorities are no longer confined to allegations of narcotics trafficking,” Mr Pintard wrote. “They raise the prospect of a broader misuse of corporate and financial systems to conceal ownership, control financial flows, and obscure the origin of funds. These are issues that directly affect the integrity of the country’s financial system and its compliance with international standards.”

The FNM has been pressing for a local investigation since a sworn affidavit filed in the US case alleged that Gardiner used Bahamian government-issued construction contracts to launder drug trafficking proceeds.

Top Notch Builders has been linked to major public projects, including the government’s $34m Eight Mile Rock administrative complex and the Carmichael Village affordable housing project.

Tribune Business previously reported that corporate records show 4,999 of the 5,000 shares in Complete Construction, the contractor for the Renaissance at Carmichael Village subdivision, are owned by Top Notch Builders.

Complete Construction’s officers and directors are also virtually the same as Top Notch’s. Samson Hield, Complete Construction’s president, was vice-president of Top Notch when the company signed the public-private partnership agreement with the government for the Eight Mile Rock administrative complex.

Tribune Business also previously reported Gardiner’s ties to Top Notch and PPP Construction and Investments, a vehicle wholly owned by the contractor and used to construct the Eight Mile Rock complex.

Gardiner’s latest court filings appear to conflict with earlier corporate filings in which he denied owning shares or having any beneficial interest in Top Notch Builders. In a beneficial ownership affidavit filed with the Registry of Records on February 13, 2017, Gardiner denied such ties to the company.

The New York filings have also raised questions about Finance Minister Michael Halkitis, who corporate records show was named as Top Notch’s president and a director for 2019, 2020 and 2021 before resigning ahead of the 2021 general election.

Mr Halkitis has said that as a private citizen, he provided financial consulting and corporate services consulting. He said he was approached to provide consulting and directorship services to Top Notch Builders, particularly to help establish proper corporate governance procedures and structures.

He said he was not hired by Gardiner and was approached by an attorney. He said his involvement began in mid-2019, but the company suspended operations by April 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. He has said he resigned from that company and all other directorships he held in 2021 and later said his involvement with Top Notch ended in April 2020.