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What Did Casanova Really Know About Barton?
Wed, March 22, 2017

Okay, so, Barton Middleton isn't Casanova's common-law husband, but what exactly is he to her? And how did she manage to convince him to show up and tell the truth about those 6 stolen visas?

That's what the Senate Select Committee wanted her to explain today, and her answers just weren't adding up. At the end, the Senators began suspecting that she knew more than she was willing to disclose, and so they grilled her for almost 2 hours on the topic. We'll have the blow-by-blow account of that conversation in  tomorrow's newscast, but here's an excerpt of the questions she was being asked about Barton Middleton:

Hon. Eamon Courtenay - PUP Senator
"I just wanted to know the circumstances of how you decided to say well get in contact with this Mr. Middleton."

Inez Casanova - Immigration Officer
"I had called?"

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"As I understand it Mr. Venon from Benque came to Orange Walk and said we are looking for Mr. Middleton in relation to the missing visas. The question I am asking is according to you, you know two Mr. Middleton, Mr. Eugene and Mr. Barton. My question is how is it that you decided to refer them to Mr. Barton or why you called Mr. Barton and he came?"

Inez Casanova
"First I called his brother and I didn't get any response so then I called this Middleton and that is how he came."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"So it's just that you knew two Middleton's and you called them and say they are investigating missing visas, they want a Mr. Middleton and he voluntarily came?"

Inez Casanova
"Yes sir."

Hon. Elena Smith - Labour Senator
"Ms. Casanova, you have admitted that you know Mr. Barton. How did you get to know Mr. Barton Middleton?"

Inez Casanova
"I got to know him through his brother because his brother works in Orange Walk with me at that time."

Hon. Elena Smith
"But was there any- did you and Mr. Middleton have any sort of connection whether through work, is it just because of his brother. What was the relationship between you and Mr. Middleton as it relates to how you to know him? Was it through business, was it just through family friend?"

Inez Casanova
"It's just through his brothers. I don't have no business it's just through his brother I get to know Mr. Middleton."

Hon. Elena Smith
"So you only know him by name or have you had contact with him on more than one occasion that you can say I know him? I can say I know Mr. Bradley but I only know him because I know he's a lawyer, I know that he had a TV show but I don't know him personally so I wouldn't be able to say things about him because I don't know him personally. How well do you know Mr. Barton Middleton?"

Inez Casanova
"I know Mr. Middleton because he would usually socialise with other people and that is how I familiarise myself and as I said before, he is the brother of Mr. Middleton and that is how I knew him, there is no other way, I don't have no business, nothing with Mr. Middleton."

Hon. Elena Smith
"Why was it important for you to assist the officers when they came to you in relation to the missing visas?"

Inez Casanova
"Because for me as an immigration officer, something to that extent is something serious."

Hon. Elena Smith
"Did they request assistance from any other persons in your department at that time or you were the only one that they went to?"

Inez Casanova
"I'm not sure, I don't know."

Hon. Elena Smith
"The matter Ms. Casanova of your being at the Calypso as the chair had asked before, you have been identified by two persons because we were told that you were identified because the person knows your brother who works at BTL, that is how they were able to say specifically that you were the one in the vehicle at the Calypso."

Inez Casanova
"I might have been in that vehicle but I have no, I'm not aware, know of anything that was done."

Hon. Elena Smith
"I just want to know specifically, were you the person in that vehicle, I'm not asking if you were at the meeting. You just said to me you might have been in the vehicle, you can't be might have been, you were either there or not there."

Inez Casanova
"I was not there at no Calypso in no vehicle."

Hon. Elena Smith
"Your might have been response Ms. Casanova is telling me that you are not telling me something. Remember you swore under oath just know that you would tell us the truth. We are not saying that you were at the meeting, you are being accused of being in the vehicle when Mr. Middleton went to meet with Mr. Mark Tench, Mr. Patrick Tillet and Mr. Eric Chang and they knew it was you because of the connection between the person knowing your brother and knowing you. So were you there?"

Inez Casanova
"No ma'am."

Hon. Elena Smith
"You were never in any setting; you were never at any time anywhere near Mr. Middleton when he met with any person of that sort?"

Inez Casanova
"No ma'am."

Hon. Elena Smith
"So then I'm confused with regards to your answer - you might have been."

Hon. Aldo Salazar - Chairman, Senate Select Committee
"Why would you say you might have been if you know for certain you were not in the vehicle?"

Inez Casanova
"Because sometimes like Mr. Middleton would ask me or anybody would ask me for a ride and then I would just bring down somebody but as far as I am aware, I have never ever been at Calypso with nobody, that's sure, sure."

Hon. Ashley Rocke - Church Senator
"Earlier you made comments that when you could not get the brother that you knew as the immigration officer, you got the other brother. How were you able to do that?"

Inez Casanova
"I called him on his phone."

Hon. Ashley Rocke
"What kind of phone did you use?"

Inez Casanova
"My phone."

Hon. Ashley Rocke
"A cell phone?"

Inez Casanova
"Yes sir."

Hon. Ashley Rocke
"That would seem to be an intimate relationship, you would have a person cell phone yet this person was not known to you in a very friendly way. Like the analogy used I would know Mr. Bradley, I would know his land phone but I wouldn't have his personal cell phone but you have indicated to us that you had his cell phone. I don't know how you would have his cell phone and not know him at all."

Inez Casanova
"I knew Mr. Middleton through his brother and I have his cell phone number and I called him for assistance for the immigration officers."

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