BRADES – Former Chief Minister and local attorney Davis S. Brandt was formally charged in court on Monday morning with one count of sexual conduct with a minor under the age of 16 and a conspiracy to have sex with a minor.
Director of Public Prosecution Oris Sullivan represented the crown while Attorney Karl Markham stood for the defense.
Brandt was released on $20,000 bail with two sureties provided by local business men, Denzil West and Alford Dyett. Several conditions were applied to his release. He was granted permission to leave island from October 9 – 13, 2015 to attend the upcoming ceremony to receive an honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of the West Indies Open Campus. He is expected to report to the Antiguan police three times a day while there.
His lawyer is required to report to local law enforcement on his clients location three times daily and the accused is to have no communication with the alleged victims, whether by email, social media, etc.
The lawyer had been arrested on Friday and spent the weekend in the custody of the Royal Montserrat Police Service (RMPS).
Officers from the renowned Scotland Yard in the United Kingdom are said to be leading the investigation.
Due to the sensitiveness of the case, authorities are tight-lipped about the extent of the alleged crimes.
David Brandt served as Chief Minister of Montserrat from 22 August 1997 to 5 April 2001.
