Justice Indra Hariprashad-Charles of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, based in the BVI, ordered that the money be confiscated from the IPOC International Growth Fund Ltd after it pleaded guilty on 30th April to falsifying information and perverting the course of justice in contravention of the Criminal Code 1997. Three other defendants based in the BVI, including International Business Companies Lapal Limited, Albany Invest Limited, and Mercury Import Limited were ordered to pay USD2.2 million in costs and USD300,000 in fines.

The court order came after a 17-month investigation by the authorities in the BVI and Bermuda into allegations that the IPOC group had made false statements about the source of USD40 million lodged with the court as part of a separate civil case.

The outcome of the case has been welcomed by the government of Bermuda, with Deputy Premier and Minister of Finance the Paula A. Cox noting that it demonstrated both the excellent cooperation between Bermuda and the BVI in criminal matters and their determination to root out such examples of corporate misdemeanours.

“The definitive result in the BVI concluded another phase of a very long and complex action that was initiated in Bermuda following an inspection into the activities of IPOC International Growth Fund Limited and eleven other associated Bermuda companies. Bermuda authorities cooperated and coordinated with BVI authorities by way of a memorandum of understanding to bring this particular matter before the BVI Courts. Together the jurisdictions collected over 500,000 documents," she observed.

Cox continued:

“The nature of the investigation, the wide-ranging scope and interlocking network of companies has required considerable detailed investigation, analysis of the corporate structure and on-site visits to other jurisdictions. This was no simple task. It was also a very costly exercise. However, Bermuda’s reputation as a well-regulated financial centre was on the line and the Government had a duty to protect it.

“The inspectors presented their findings to me, as the Minister of Finance, in June 2006. Following my examination of the inspectors report, I concluded that it was in Bermuda’s best interest to petition the Courts to wind up the companies. The wind-up petition was presented to the Supreme Court in 2007 and following the result in the British Virgin Islands, Government anticipates that the civil action in Bermuda’s Supreme Court now will proceed to conclusion in the very near future.

“In the course of this long-running saga every available follow-up action was taken. As a jurisdiction, we expended considerable time and energy to protect, preserve and to enhance Bermuda’s position in the international market-place.

“The BVI Court also ordered the confiscation of the assets of IPOC International Growth Fund. This confiscation is one of the largest in a common law jurisdiction. The agreement between the Government of Bermuda and the Government of the British Virgin Islands sets out how the confiscated assets will be shared between our two jurisdictions.

Cox's statement concluded:

On behalf of the authorities in Bermuda, I wish to thank and congratulate the authorities of the British Virgin Islands for their excellent cooperation in this very necessary and vital regulatory enforcement action.”