WHOSE CASH IS THIS?
Based on a careful examination of this fact in this villa ownership drama, a few observations are in order:
The incorporator of Blaircourt Property Development Ltd and sole director Earl Grant was not involved in the company’s first land acquisition transaction a mere 24 days after he brought the company into existence. The legal authority with which a certain individual travelled to DC and paid Cecil Lockhart the equivalent of EC$239,580 for land in the name of Blaircourt Property Development Ltd, remains unclear.
What is clear is that Blaircourt Property Development Ltd did not belong to Grant and he was merely fronting for and taking directions from the real owner or owners who wished to hide from the public the truth about the ownership of Blaircourt
Along with the 1.25 acre parcel transferred by Cecil B. J. Lockhart in April, 2007, the 1.493 acre parcel purchased from Airman Rufus Laville Savarin completes a contiguous portion of 2.743 acres acquired at the alleged price of $369,580. When we add land transfer taxes of $36,958.00 and legal fees of $11,087.40, we come to a total of $417,625.40 that official Blaircourt documents indicate the company, less than one-year old company at the time and operated by sole director Renneth Alexis, was able to spend on land in the Guillet with no known income stream and no evidence of any bank financing either.
But that is not where the land purchase story ends. The two parcels that now comprise a single parcel were allegedly purchased at different per sq ft rates – one at $4.40 the other at $2.00 – in separate transactions months apart of each other in the same year, 2007.
Based on mistakes previously made by Skerrit’s trusted attorney on land transfer matters, who has also emerged as Blaircourt’s land transfer attorney of choice, the alleged purchase price of $130,000 for the 1.493 acres of land from Rufus Savarin is completely without credibility. Indeed, sources close to that transaction have revealed that the vendor received in the region $200,000 for the land – a far more credible story based on the known market value of the two properties that are now one under the ownership of Blaircourt.
With this $70,000 adjustment we are now looking at a minimum total cash outlay of $487,625.40 for Blaircourt’s land acquisitions in 2007
Both titles were issued free and clear of any encumbrance… meaning that the properties were paid for cash… Whose cash is this?
The $200,000 owed by M&R to McKenzie Mitchell since 2004 was finally settled (or almost fully paid in cash) in the last quarter of 2007… Whose cash is this?
In other words, the same Renneth Alexis who began the year 2007 as a director of M&R liable for a debt of $200,000 which could not be paid since 2004 was somehow able to shell out close to $700,000 in cash between April 26th and December 17th, 2007 to settle the debt and purchase properties for Blaircourt… Whose cash is this?
Additionally, in his miracle financial year 2007, Renneth Alexis was also able to secure $4,892,380 in loan financing from the AID Bank and from FCIB for a 2-building apartment complex in Picard with a total of 63 units. We are in receipt of reliable construction engineering advice that this modern, upscale facility could not be built and furnished so luxuriously for less than 9 million dollars.
Based on that assessment, additional expenditure estimated at 4.1 million dollars remains unaccounted for having carefully considered the loan financing agreements made public by Mr. Alexis. Whose cash is this?
The Picard apartments are in the name of Avie’s Ville INC, a 2001 corporate entity, in which Mr. Alexis and his wife Avalyn are the two directors.
Alexis is director of debt strapped M&R which has been teetering on the brink for a number of years. He is also a director of Avie’s Ville which appears to be holding its own, but apparently not well enough for the other director of Avie’s – his wife – to be part of Blaircourt his new corporate giant in the making
So Alexis wants Dominica to believe that Blaircourt is the fruit of his 30 year journey in business dating back to the phenomenal accomplishment of purchasing his first property at age 14 from the proceeds of crab sales. He is now spending the millions he has worked hard for and Blaircourt therefore belongs to him and him alone.
Where were these millions to settle legitimate debts that he contracted as a director of M&R prior to April 2007? What manner of man is he who uses other people’s private money to keep his company from going under at a time when he is sitting on millions?
7 villas are nearing completion and work has begun on two more.
We have reliable construction engineering advice that the construction cost of these villas as designed and as they are being built is conservatively estimated at 6.5 million dollars.
The bank financing, negotiated by Mr. Alexis only accounts for 2.3 million dollars, which raises questions about the source of additional project expenditure estimated at 4.2 million dollars. Whose cash is this?
