Monday, 27th August 1990

0845 Rest Day

Informed to be available for meeting with Commissioner.
Friday unable to attend re activities (8 hrs time off 24.8.90) N.B. message on answer machine re “within 2 hours”, Friday.
Update diary @ office.

The entry, the only entry, on the last page I completed in my CID diary is endorsed with the signatures and dates:

S. Rollin 21 27/8
Arnfield A/DI 28/8
Jackson 29/8

At this time, George Jackson was the acting Detective Chief Inspector (DCI).

To my recollection George Jackson paraded me before the Commissioner of Police, Clive Donald, later that day, the 27th.  According to the Deputy Governor’s office, this occurred on Tuesday 28th.  Irrespective, I was, before Clive, accused of ‘bucking authority’ and attempting to tape-record my DCI.  My accuser … the head of the narcotics department, my boss, Detective Chief Inspector Dennis RAMSEY. 

The Bermuda police did not let a silly little thing such as evidence spoil their day.  Instigating a disciplinary hearing (as should have occurred given an adverse conduct allegation) was not going to stand between them and their objective.  My contract (5-years being up 03/1991) was not to be renewed. 

I was removed from the narcotics department.  This came as no surprise; I was at the forefront of an investigation later to be described as:

the largest and most serious crimes of conspiracy, drug trafficking, and money laundering ever conducted in the Bermuda Police Service

The suspects in this enquiry had been missed once.  Information was received, submitted 26/02/1990 (ref. 15/90) and assigned the operational name ‘Flogger’ about the sale of narcotics.  Attending with search warrants, the premises were empty, the suspects seemingly tipped-off, presumably by someone in the BPS Narco’ department.  A lawyer on the island was suspected of being the importer’s island ‘point man’; a coordinator and liaison in the event of ‘problems’.  The investigation extended to murders in the USA – to include a person suspected of being our informant being shot dead – not our informant! 

Subsequently, we learned the USA narcotics suppliers intended to kill everyone involved in their Bermuda operation, convicted or otherwise.

However, in August 1990, I had a heads-up from a US Law Enforcement Officer with whom we were working.   A person named ‘RAMSEY‘ was an associate of those we were investigating.  But Clive was aware of this, or should have been, 20/05/1990 an Intel’ (intelligence) report was submitted to the Commissioner of Police:

The Miranda enquiry (mentioned above) has repeated some allegations about certain people, one of which is the lawyer [redacted], the other DCI RAMSEY.

Within 24 hours of receiving the call from the US officer, I was back in uniform.

Whilst the Clive’s specific direction (with George present) was that I was not to become involved in further Narcotics activity, I spent most of my remaining months in the Narcotics office. This is evidenced by the dates on intelligence and other reports I completed or had access to.  It also enabled me to secure copies of the information relating to the ongoing matters which the unsubstantiated allegations were clearly designed to remove me from.

Yet, within days of the directive from Clive for me to be transferred to uniform, George Jackson telephoned me.  I did not answer the phone.  Instead, I let George leave a message on my answer machine requesting my attendance at the narcotics office for an operation that evening,  blatantly ignoring the Clive’s instruction.  

Why such disregard for Clive’s unequivocal instruction …

It transpired a Mr. Seney had been arrested whilst attempting to import cocaine.  An intriguing arrest and one I was happy to play no party in.  Mr Seney was associated with a reasonable amount of cocaine and was playing ball; he would make arrangements to make a ‘supervised’ delivery of the drug to his island point of contact.  We are talking substantial packages of the drug.

It is not wise (or necessary) for someone like Mr Seney to posses the original packages, the entire ‘shipment’, to have this returned to him to undertake a transaction, to supply the drugs. Firstly he may do a runner with the drugs or attempt to dispose of them, secondly, the ‘sting’ may go wrong.  The accepted, well practiced process was to clone the packages; created look-alike parcels into which a small amount of the cocaine form the seized packets was placed.  A packet containing no drug could not be passed as … where is the offence in the absence f any actual drug taking place.

Dummy packages were required for the ‘controlled delivery’.  manufacturing these packets was an art; size, style all had to be passable and the amount of cocaine removed the original documented, the procedure documented carefully – continuity of events and evidence had to be water-tight.  I was methodical and had some experience of constructing this packets, of undertaking the necessary deception.  But I failed to show … after all, Clive had been clear; i was no longer to work at Narco’ … I could hardly attend and buck authority could I! 

No dummy packages were made, the delivery occurred at Gibbs Hill lighthouse and the suspect got away, with the entire drug haul! More information will follow about this incident, the Keystone Cops saga. 

… and Dennis Ramsey …. placed on gardening leave never to return to the narcotics office!