By: Staff Writer
July 12, 2024
Chief Superintendent in charge of the Central Detective Unit in The Bahamas, Michael Johnson, has been placed on “garden leave” pending a thorough investigation after a voice note alleging a bribery scandal went viral.
Johnson, it is alleged, was recorded on several voice notes that are purporting to capture conversations involving him, a well-known lawyer and Michael Fox, Jr, a man police described as a prominent gang leader when he was killed in May.
Another man, Dino Smith, was killed in January and is also featured on the voice notes, which spread rapidly last week and brought the credibility of the Royal Bahamas Police Force under scrutiny in an era where police have repeatedly blamed the high murder rate on gang violence and the Davis administration has talked much about strengthening anti-gang laws.
The voice notes purportedly capture a conversation between Fox Jr. and the officer, suggesting a deal to make criminal charges disappear in exchange for $100,000.
The controversy stems from a brazen theft of a local bank, where $1.4 million was stolen during a transport operation, with only $45,000 subsequently being recovered.
The five leaked voice notes feature conversations seemingly about an arrangement that would allow the police to drop their investigation into Fox and his associates.
Police had issued wanted posters for Fox and Smith concerning the theft of $1,475,000 from an unattended security vehicle transporting cash for the Bank of the Bahamas to a private airport on November 2. However, the men were never charged with the incident.
Fox was paralysed eight years ago after he was shot while reportedly repairing a car on Ida Street.
In 2019, the Court of Appeal overturned Smith’s 18-year manslaughter conviction for the death of Levardo Deveaux on Fowler Street.
The incident sparked a high-profile investigation, resulting in wanted posters being issued by police for Fox Jr. and another individual, Dino Smith, both suspected in connection with the heist.
According to the leaked voice notes, Fox Jr. and the officer discuss a quid-pro-quo but the officer tells Fox he does not want to discuss the matter over the phone and would prefer to do it in person.
The voice notes were leaked online by a Haitian vlogger, Sylvens Metayer, who was living in the US. Additionally, two days after Metayer leaked the voice notes, he was shot while filming a live stream.