Local News

UPDATED: Katriona Gilbert sentenced to 18 years for manslaughter of Ariel Lowe

A WOMAN who strangled her girlfriend and then lit her bedroom afire in a jealous rage was sentenced yesterday to 18 years in prison as part of a plea deal after she admitted responsibility for her role in a domestic dispute that turned fatal.

US pre-clearance reopens at Grand Bahama airport

THE US pre-clearance service reopened on Thursday morning at the Grand Bahama International Airport nearly four weeks after the passage of Hurricane Matthew.

UPDATED: BPL says power restored to New Providence after latest outage

BAHAMAS Power and Light Company Ltd (BPL) says it has completed restoration in New Providence following an island-wide outage just before 5am on Thursday.

Family of man killed in RBDF accident want ‘someone held responsible’

ONE month after Christopher Turnquest was tragically killed in a boating accident, the family of the 25-year-old is demanding that “someone be held responsible” for his death.

Sunryse and RBC to host the ninth annual Shred Day

SUNRYSE Information Management and RBC Royal Bank are set to host the ninth annual Shred Day on Thursday, November 10, at which the public are encouraged to bring up to 100lbs of paper documents - bank statements, receipts and other personal records - to be securely shredded free of charge.

Civic leaders say need for government transparency is ‘critical’

WITH donations pouring in from around the world in the wake of Hurricane Matthew, the need for transparency and accountability is critical if the Bahamas is to remain a reputable recipient of international beneficence, a group of civic leaders said yesterday.

Jennifer Isaacs-Dotson elected President of the Caribbean Congress of Labour

VETERAN Bahamian trade union leader Jennifer Isaacs-Dotson has been elected as President of The Caribbean Congress of Labour (CCL), the regional trade union of national workers organisations.

Documents not ready in sexual assault case

A MAN accused of the attempted sexual assault of a 12-year-old girl will not have his case transferred to the Supreme Court until next month.

Man fined $5,000 for drug possession

A MAN was fined $5,000 yesterday after he pleaded guilty to possession of dangerous drugs with intent to supply.

$1.4m in applications seeking to utilise Hurricane Matthew exigency order

THE government has received almost $1.4 million in applications submitted by persons seeking to utilise the exigency order declared in the wake of Hurricane Matthew, Minister of National Insurance and Labour Shane Gibson said yesterday. The 180-day exigency order, declared effective from October 7, allows residents affected by the storm to import certain items into the country duty and tax-free. It only covers New Providence, Grand Bahama, the Berry Islands and North and Central Andros.

Post-storm radio issues forcing Emergency staff to use their cell phones

EMERGENCY Medical Services personnel on Grand Bahama are currently using cell phones as their “primary means” of communication because of problems with their radio communications system, Labour and National Insurance Minister Shane Gibson said yesterday.

Bahamas is in ‘critical stages’ of establishing drug treatment court

MINISTER of National Security Dr Bernard Nottage said Wednesday that the Bahamas is in the “critical stages” of establishing a Drug Treatment Court to provide an alternative to incarceration for drug-dependent offenders through treatment and rehabilitation.

D’Aguilar: Govt ‘selling souls to the Chinese’

THE Christie administration is “selling souls to the Chinese,” businessman Dionisio D’Aguilar said yesterday in response to reports that the government gave the Bahamas embassy in China the go-ahead to have talks with Chinese officials about an agri-fisheries proposal for Andros.

PAC report slams Urban Renewal

AFTER numerous delays, the Public Accounts Committee tabled its report into the Urban Renewal Commission, finding it “severely lacking in accountability” coupled with “minimal fiscal safeguards” and led by co-chairs who are extremely “naïve” and unclear of their roles to properly administer the initiative.

Minister accuses the Public Accounts Committee of bias

LABOUR Minister Shane Gibson yesterday rejected the Public Accounts Committee’s report on the Urban Renewal Small Homes Repair project and accused the PAC of “churlish, politically driven, and obtuse bias,” which led it to dismiss credible evidence during its probe.

The Tribune