iNews Briefs
Cayman Islands Suspended Prison Officer Resigns
December 5, 2014
Suspended Prison Officer suspected of providing false information on the application to the Prison Service has today resigned with immediate effect. The investigation into the matter was completed today and the suspended officer was called in to be formerly charged under the Prison Officers Discipline Regulations (1999 Revision). At that time, the officer opted to resign from his post.
Original post: Prison officer suspended:
An anonymous source recently alerted the Prison management that an officer in their employment may have a criminal conviction stemming from an incident that occurred over a decade ago. A decision has been taken to suspend the employee pending a full investigation of the matter.From HM Cayman Islands Prison Service
Bear hug stops Cayman Islands thief
Man Arrested for theft on Grand Cayman Waterfront
Just before 11:00am Wednesday 3rd December 2014, a uniform officer on the waterfront in George Town was notified of a theft at the Craft Market, adjacent to the junction of Boilers Road and South Church Street.
A 48 year old Bodden Town resident was arrested for the theft of a waist bag containing cash and personal effects from a stall. The accused made escape on foot but was pursued by the stall operator who gave immediate chase. The male was apprehended not far from the Hard Rock Café restaurant to a uniform constable.
Police on arrival said the accused was firmly held in what he described as a bear hug.
The accused was charged with theft and appeared in Summary Court the same day.
One killed, 10 injured when small aircraft crashes in Bahamian waters
From CND
San Juan, Dec 2 (EFE).- One person was killed Tuesday when a small aircraft crashed in Atlantic Ocean waters near Nassau international airport in the Bahamas.
Ten other people- four Bahamians and six Americans- aboard the plane survived.
The aircraft departed around 8:00 a.m. from an airport in Governor’s Harbour on Eleuthera island and lost power some 550 feet (170 meters) before reaching the Nassau coast, Delvin Major of the the Bahamas Flight Standards Inspectorate told Efe.
The 10 survivors, some of them with minor injuries, were transported to two hospitals in Nassau.
Major was unable to provide the name of the man who was killed.
Authorities continue investigating the causes of the plane crash.
Cayman Islands Garbage Collection Holiday Schedule
The Department of Environmental Health (DEH) officials wish to advise the public of changes in the garbage collection schedule for Christmas Day Thursday, 25th December.
For all Cayman Islands residents:
- All landfills in Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman will be closed to the public on Christmas Day. They will reopen on Friday, 26 December 2014.
For Bodden Town District residents:
- Garbage will not be collected on Christmas Day. Collection will resume the next day Friday, 26 December 2014.
For Cayman Brac and Little Cayman:
- Residential garbage will not be collected on Christmas Day. Collection will resume on Friday, 26 December 2014.
For commercial collection, island-wide:
- Commercial collection will be suspended on Christmas Day. However, collection scheduled for Christmas Day will receive priority on Friday, 26 December 2014.
For New Year’s Day, there are no changes to residential and commercial collection, or to landfill access.
Department officials wish everyone a happy and safe holiday. For more information, contact DEH’s solid waste unit at 949-8793.
SRS celebrates 10 years in Cayman Islands
By Stephen Durham From CIT
Captive management and consulting firm Strategic Risk Solutions (SRS) has celebrated its ten-year anniversary at the IMAC Cayman Captive Forum.
The company’s Cayman based subsidiary, SRS (Cayman) was formed and licensed in November 2004.
Since its formation, the company has grown to be the fourth largest captive manager in the Cayman Islands with 75 captives under management.
“It has been exciting to see the company grow to its current position in Cayman and fill the need for a high quality independent captive manager,” said Wayne Cowan, vice chairman of SRS (Cayman).
“Having worked in the Cayman captive industry for several years, I always believed that the SRS model of quality service and value added consulting would be successful.”
Cowan started with the company in 2005 and was joined soon thereafter by co-managing directors Ron Sulisz and Seamus Tivenan. The three have led SRS Cayman through most of its history.
The company has recently added a fourth managing director in Dan MacLean who joined from Aon Insurance Management in September 2014.
Brady Young, president of SRS, commented: “I want to thank and congratulate Sulisz, Tivenan and Cowan for their hard work, dedication and professionalism in establishing SRS as one of the leading captive management firms in the Cayman Islands.”
“Our success has been driven by putting seasoned captive insurance professionals in a position where they can focus on the needs of their clients.”
For more: http://www.captiveinsurancetimes.com/captiveinsurancenews/article.php?article_id=3738#.VH92x75-RIc
Over $69,000 undeclared currency discovered in luggage at US preclearance in Bahamas
From Caribbean News Now
NASSAU, Bahamas — US Customs and Border Protection officers at the Nassau Preclearance facility discovered $69,739 in undeclared US currency inside a traveler’s carry-on and checked luggage. The Royal Bahamas Police Force took custody of the traveler and the currency.
On November 24, CBP officers encountered a 51-year-old female US citizen traveling to Fort Myers, Florida. The subject was referred for a secondary baggage exam after Nassau Airport Authority Security alerted to a large sum of money inside a piece of checked luggage. During the baggage exam, CBP officers discovered several envelopes addressed to multiple people containing US currency. The subject only reported $900 on her declaration and when questioned reaffirmed to CBP officers that she was traveling with less than $10,000. The traveler failed to formally report the money to CBP resulting in the seizure of the currency.
“This seizure is an excellent example of the cooperative working relationship US Customs and Border Protection has with Nassau Airport Authority Security, who notified CBP of an anomaly in a bag,” said Robert Allen Smith, area port director for Nassau Preclearance. “CBP officers provided the traveler with multiple opportunities to accurately report all currency in her possession; however, she failed to comply with the reporting requirements. The easiest way for travelers to hold on to their currency is to truthfully report it all to a CBP officer.”
Individuals are permitted to carry any amount of currency or monetary instruments into or out of the United States. However, if the quantity is $10,000 or higher, they must formally report the currency to CBP. Failure to report may result in seizure of the currency and/or arrest.
CBP Preclearance operations allow for advance inspection of passengers and special coordination with law enforcement upon arrival in the United States. Through preclearance, the same immigration, customs, and agriculture inspections of international air passengers performed on arrival in the United States are instead completed before departure at foreign airports. Currently, preclearance operations exist at 15 foreign airports in six different countries, benefitting air passengers, airports, and air carriers, in the United States and abroad.
Record numbers of people attend Cayman Islands Pink Ladies
A record number of 600 people came to Saturday’s (29 November) Pink Ladies bazaar and tea at the Arts and Recreation Centre (ARC), Camana Bay, Grand Cayman.
Handmade Christmas crafts and sweet treats were on hand and the Pink Ladies are hoping to raise $20,000.
JHTA president applauds removal of UK travel tax on children
From Jamaica Observer
KINGSTON, Jamaica — President of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) Nicola Madden Greig today applauded the decision by United Kingdom to remove the Air Passenger Duty (APD) for children under 12 from next May.
“It is anticipated that this move will definitely make Jamaica a more attractive destination choice for UK families and we welcome the decision,” Madden Greig told OBSERVER ONLINE. “The JHTA is elated to hear of the measure.”
UK Chancellor George Osborne today announced the abolition of the tax and also pledged to abolish APD for children under 16 as of May 1, 2016.
“The ADP has long been seen as a restrictive tax especially for families travelling with children as it significantly increased the cost of a holiday for a standard family of four,” Greig commented.
The removal of the tax is projected to reduce the travel cost for a family of four (two children and two adults) to Jamaica.
Cayman Islands man gets suspended sentence for keeping explosives he had found
Ronaldo Humberto Garcia (25) admitted to the police he had found explosives comprising five blasting caps and five sticks of Orica Senatel Magnafrac explosives and had stored them at his home without permission from the National Roads Authority.
Police officers told the court they had a search warrant and found the explosives in a closet. Two small quantities of ganja were also recovered from the home.
Garcia had shown remorse and had fully co-operated with the police.
Magistrate Angelyn Hernandez gave Garcia a custodial sentence of 6 months for having the explosives but suspended it for two years.
For having the ganja, the magistrate placed him on probation for two years that included random drug testing.
The explosives were ordered to be destroyed.
Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCL) Jumps: Stock Rises 6.2%
By Zacks Equity Research Published on December 03, 2014 | No Comments
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (RCL – Analyst Report) was a big mover last session, as the company saw its shares rise over 6% on the day. The move came on solid volume too with far more shares changing hands than in a normal session. This continues recent uptrend for the company — as the stock is now up almost 16% since Nov 4.
The company has seen 1 positive estimate revision over the past 30 days, while the Zacks Consensus Estimate remained unchanged. The recent price action is encouraging though, so make sure to keep a close watch on this firm in the near future.
Royal Caribbean currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) while its Earnings ESP is positive.
Investors interested in the leisure and recreation services industry may consider stocks like Diamond Resorts International, Inc. (DRII – Snapshot Report), Interval Leisure Group, Inc. (IILG – Snapshot Report) and Carnival Corporation (CCL – Analyst Report). While Diamond Resorts and Interval Leisure sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Carnival has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
For more; http://www.zacks.com/stock/news/156050/royal-caribbean-cruises-rcl-jumps-stock-rises-62
Cayman Islands Lighthouse School celebrates International Day for Persons with Disabilities
The Cayman Islands Lighthouse School celebrated International Day of Persons with Disabilities on Wednesday, 3 December 2014.
School and staff dedicated the day to activities focused on removing the stigma that persons with disabilities can face in the community.
At the end of the day the entire school joined several guests for a special assembly. There they heard from a guest speaker Keisha Martin who works with Royal Cayman Islands Police highlighted how individuals with disabilities, are able to integrate into the community.
As part of celebrations students also received a chance to participate in a gift giveaway at the end of the day.
Photo(s) by Kristi Anderson
Lighthouse School students and staff celebrate International Day for Persons with Disabilities.
GrabTaxi calls in S$328m funding from SoftBank
From Channel News Asia
SINGAPORE: Taxi-booking mobile app developer GrabTaxi on Thursday (Dec 4) announced it had received a US$250 million (S$328 million) investment from Japanese conglomerate SoftBank – a sum it touted as the “largest ever” by a South-east Asian Internet company.
The injection in funds would make SoftBank the largest investor in GrabTaxi to date, according to the press release. GrabTaxi Founder and CEO Anthony Tan said he is “thankful” that the Japanese company believes in the company.
He said: “We will leverage SoftBank’s expertise and group synergies across their mobile and Internet platforms to further accelerate our growth. This new round of funding will help drive our mission of revolutionising and improving the way South-east Asians commute more aggressively than ever before.”
This latest investment brings the total amount the company has received in the past 14 months to almost US$340 million, it said, adding that there are more than 500,000 active users and 2.5 million app downloads to date.
Across the six countries it serves – Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam and Indonesia – the number of taxi drivers in the network increased almost 300 per cent to 60,000 in the past 12 months ended November 2014, the company said. It also estimated that there are three taxi bookings made via their app every second across the region – almost an 800 per cent increase from a year ago.
For more: http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/business/singapore/grabtaxi-calls-in-s-328/1508988.html
Analyst issues new rating on company: Wuxi Pharmatech [Cayman] Inc
By Daniel Richards From FICO
Wuxi Pharmatech [Cayman] Inc (NYSE:WX): Stock Analysts at the Brokerage Firm Jefferies downgrades their rating on Wuxi Pharmatech [Cayman] Inc. The firm issued a rating of Hold. The previous rating was Buy. Analysts at Jefferies lowers their price target at $38. The previous price target was $40. Wuxi Pharmatech [Cayman] Inc (NYSE:WX) has witnessed a steep cut of 0.11% or 0.04 points in its share price. The shares closed at $35.49, near the intraday low of $35 amid a volume of 323,507 shares. The trading session commenced with the first trade recorded at $35.68 and the shares hit a high of $35.68 before selling pressure mounted. The previous close of the share price was $35.53. The 52-week high of the share price is $40.715 and the 52-week low is $29.84. Wuxi Pharmatech [Cayman] Inc (NYSE:WX) has a market cap of $2,485 million with around 70,019,000 shares in public circulation.
