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Cops’ Day On The Stand At Senate Select
posted (July 19, 2017)

The Senate Hearings on Immigration continued today and things got hot when 2 police officers testified.

The first was the Retired Superintendent Julio Valdez, the now retired former Deputy commander of the National Criminal Investigations Branch. And in the afternoon session, Police Commissioner Allen Whylie was called.

We start with this afternoon’s testimony of Commissioner Whylie. Though he’s not mentioned once in the Auditor General’s reports for any type of questionable behavior, the Commissioner had to sit through 2 hours in the hot seat, while he was grilled by the Senators.

It’s been almost an entire year now that the Audit Reports have been out, and as you’ve been seeing in these hearings, there are layers and layers of irregularities and illegalities which happened at Immigration between 2011 and 2013. Persons got documents that they were not entitled to, and the systems of checks and balances were breached along the way.

There is even the clear suggestion that a wholesale hustling enterprise was afoot, yet the Police Department hasn’t launched any criminal investigation using the findings of the report. And, the man who’s reluctant to make that decision is Commissioner Whylie. We’ve showed you how as early as last year September, we started pressing him on that. In that time, he has still not budged, and today, the Senate challenged him on that decision. Here’s the back and forth on that topic:

Ashley Rocke - Church Senator
"2013 comes along and you become the commissioner of Police. Would it have been hard to investigate a department that you were once CEO of?"

Allen Whylie - Commissioner of Police
"No I don't think so because I  think anybody who knows me as Allen Whylie know me as commissioner Whylie knows that I am a no nonsense person, I stand for discipline, fair play and I have no fear to investigate anybody and anyone. It is not that the police would not investigate but I felt that since there was the auditor general doing an investigation I didn't feel that the resources that the police doing a parallel investigation would be useful and that was my public continents and I am still of that view."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay - PUP Senator
"These reports have been made public. Have you assigned responsibility to anybody in the police department to go through this in detail, identify possible persons who should be investigated for criminal wrong doing?"

Allen Whylie
"No sir, I have not since - as I've said since I've received these reports the past 2 weeks I'm going through them; I have not but I have said publicly recently when I asked that I look forward to the outcome of this committee report and whatever recommendations or wrong doings or directives come whether or not that report comes to me, it goes to the DPP, where ever, we will comply with whatever is the recommendations and so on. I think that from my browsing of these reports, it is obvious as you said that the system broke down and individuals allowed the system to break down because those individuals are the persons who did things against policy."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"And the law."

Allen Whylie
"Against policy and the law yes and there is sufficient I would think from a administrative point of view based on what the auditor general said that administrative internal discipline could perhaps be instituted against these individuals."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"Mr. Commissioner why is it that nothing is being done on the criminal side from these documents right here?"

Allen Whylie
"Again these reports as I said I would have expected the auditor general would have sent a copy to us because that is the normal norm of auditor general's investigation."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"So no pro-action on your side?"

Allen Whylie
"No sir I haven't done anything, as I said I just got my hands on these reports and I am going through them and I am waiting on the outcome of this committee."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"Out of all of this immigration thing that has been happening, none of your officers has come to you and recommended any investigation into any irregularities identified by the auditor general?"

Allen Whylie
"No sir."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"None at all?"

Allen Whylie
"No sir."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"You are aware of any active investigation by the police into any of the irregularities identified by the auditor general?"

Allen Whylie
"No sir."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"In so far as the Valdez investigation, you don't know where that is?"

Allen Whylie
"No as I said I will undertake to find out where we are with that investigation because I thought Mr. Valdez had concluded and had submitted to the DPP."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"Based on the last couple weeks you have been browsing through those..."

Allen Whylie
"The last two weeks."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"Last couple weeks that you have been browsing through will you take any active steps now to initiate any investigation based on what you have seen?"

Allen Whylie
"As I said Senator I would prefer to wait on the outcome of this committee report. I was very annoyed in terms of when I browsed this report because I viewed the things the auditor general discovered as very grave in terms of what is alleged some of these individuals have done. As I said I believe that the report contains sufficient for administratively for the department to deal with some of these individuals. I look forward to this committee report in terms of moving forward."

Hon. Mark Lizarraga - Business Senator
"Compol if you've read or perused the report over the last 2 weeks did you see the countless instances where the auditor general has highlighted that the police should investigate certain things?"

Allen Whylie
"I've seen at least 3 occasions where the auditor general recommended that the police pursue certain things. I'm saying that I found it strange that the auditor general would normally do the investigation and if they find irregularities they would send it to the commissioner of police. It wasn't done in this case. If I didn't take the initiative of having an officer to get a copy of these to be browsing through, I would have come here today and I would be clueless."

Hon. Mark Lizarraga
"Commissioner with the greatest of respect, this is a national issue it's been going on for a long time. I find it incredible that you've not taken the initiative to get copies of these. You know that you do not need to have a report from this committee to commence your investigations do you not?"

Allen Whylie
“But I will reserve the judgement Senator but I’ve heard what you said.â€￾

Hon. Mark Lizarraga
“But you realize of course that it has been said that the work of this committee would not have been necessary had you have done your work?â€￾

Allen Whylie
“Well I haven’t heard but again as I indicated what I can I do if the auditor general did not send them to me. There is a process, why wasn’t that process done in this case.â€￾

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