Ex-CHCL Boss Found Guilty: 2 Counts of Forgery

A former head of the state-owned Cargo Handling Corporation (CHCL), Presley Paul, has been convicted of using forged diplomas to secure his position. The verdict, delivered by the Intermediate Court, found Paul guilty on two counts of forgery. His sentence is yet to be determined.

The Investigation and Parliament

Paul’s appointment as Director of the CHCL first came under scrutiny following a parliamentary question from Xavier-Luc Duval.

It was revealed that Paul had submitted two fraudulent qualifications: one in logistics and international trade, and another in management and leadership.

Paul was subsequently arrested by the Central CID on Tuesday, June 27, 2023.

Evidence of Deception

The investigation found that Paul had never attended the Charles Telfair Institute, the institution purportedly issuing the diplomas.

The documents themselves showed several inconsistencies, including the absence of an official seal, an incorrect format, and references to academic programmes that didn’t exist at the time the certificates were supposedly awarded.

Despite Paul’s denial that he had submitted the documents, the court found the testimony of the CHCL’s Human Resources manager to be credible and impartial.

The court concluded that Paul had knowingly used the forged documents to secure the lucrative position of Director, which paid a salary of Rs 200,000.

The Moral Impact

Although the diplomas were not an official requirement for the director’s role, the court determined that the use of forged documents was detrimental to the “moral interests of the state,” particularly concerning transparency and public trust.

Source: Defi Media