MAJOR SSL TWIST
Former executives taken into custody amid fraud case scrutiny
Published:Sunday | December 28, 2025 | 12:11 AMLivern Barrett - Senior Staff Reporter
An attorney representing Jamaican sprint icon Usain Bolt has warned that it would be a “facade” to proceed with a trial solely against Jean-Ann Panton, the former wealth adviser at Stocks & Securities Limited (SSL), who is facing criminal charges in connection with the alleged multibillion-dollar fraud at the collapsed investment firm.
Linton Gordon, one of Bolt’s attorneys, told The Sunday Gleaner that it would be difficult for prosecutors to establish that the adviser alone was responsible for the missing funds.
“Because the case would likely not be established that she took the funds or all the funds that’s missing,” Gordon said yesterday.
His comments came hours after three persons, including two former SSL executives, were taken into custody as part of the long-running investigation which began nearly three years ago after the alleged fraud was first revealed.
In March last year, Jamaican authorities validated a claim that a company owned by Bolt was allegedly defrauded of US$6.2 million or almost J$950 million.
The attorney said, given that Bolt’s investment was not taken to SSL in a bag or a basket and placed on a counter, it was “difficult to imagine or accept” that Panton – the only person so far charged in connection with the alleged J$5-billion fraud, impacting more than 200 clients – could be solely responsible for all the funds that went missing.
While declining to comment directly on Saturday’s developments, Gordon said they were welcome news for his client.
“We welcome any new developments which points to further and better investigative results that will guide further prosecution and further investigation,” Gordon said.
“And we hope that this will give us a platform to proceed deeper and further and more strongly with the civil case we are pursuing on behalf of our client.”
Hugh Croskery, the founder of SSL, and his daughter, Sarah Meany, were taken into custody during coordinated early-morning operations by multiple law enforcement agencies in St Andrew and St James on Saturday, the Financial Investigations Division (FID) disclosed.
The FID – an arm of the Ministry of Finance – is leading the investigation with support from the police and the Major Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency.
Croskery and Meany were taken into custody on reasonable suspicion of breaches of the Bank of Jamaica Act, the Securities Act, the Larceny Act and the Banking Services Act, according to a statement released by the FID late Saturday.
Zachary Harding, a former chief executive officer at SSL, turned himself in to investigators late Saturday.
He was being held on reasonable suspicion of breaching the Bank of Jamaica Act, the Securities Act, the Banking Services Act and the Companies Act, the statement said.
No charges had been laid against them up to late Saturday, multiple sources said.
Meany’s Husband, Dermot, was also arrested for a suspected breach of the Firearms Act, which the FID claimed was discovered during the operation in Kempshot district in St James.
It’s alleged that Dermot Meany – a licensed firearm holder – was found with ammunition exceeding the legally permitted amount.
Documents related to SSL and multiple electronic devices were among the items seized at the Meanys’ premises, the FID said.
“Mrs Meany was taken in for her direct connection to activities at SSL,” said the statement.
The FID has previously disclosed that more than 200 client accounts at SSL, including Bolt’s – the double world record holder over the 100 and 200 metres – were impacted by alleged fraud and irregularities amounting to over US$30 million, which came to light in January 2023.
The decision to take the former SSL executives into custody was based on a legal opinion by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) , the country’s prosecutorial authority, said one investigator who was not authorised to speak publicly about the case.
The disclosure comes as news of the operations triggered wide public criticism of the near three-year-long investigation.
Chief prosecutor Claudette Thompson said her office recommended charges against three people on December 15.
“We found that there was sufficient material in respect of three persons and investigations continue in respect of others,” she told The Sunday Gleaner.
CRITICAL EVIDENCE OUTSTANDING
In January of this year, then DPP Paula Llewellyn told The Sunday Gleaner that a critical piece of evidence remained outstanding, hindering her office’s ability to complete its review and issue a ruling.
She said that despite significant progress in analysing the case file, the crucial element – which she declined to name –was still missing from the FID.
The FID said it was working on providing the additional evidence.
“We have allocated sufficient resources to ensure that we try our best to obtain the vital piece of outstanding information. And we believe that these will be obtained,” Keith Darien, the head of investigations at the financial crimes law enforcement entity, said then.
He noted that the investigation has been complex and said the agency has provided “well over 90 per cent” of the requisite material.
Bolt’s attorney said he “can only hope” that the new development in the probe is indicative of a review of the quality of the available evidence or a new approach has been taken to the existing evidence that was available all along.
CIVIL MATTERS, PAYOUT
Clients, including Bolt, have brought civil cases against SSL but those matters have virtually stalled in court.
In August, SSL trustee Caydion Campbell told The Sunday Gleaner that Bolt’s company, Welljen, was one of some 40 defrauded clients set to start receiving payouts from a compensation fund by the end of that month.
After months of verification delays, Campbell said that he has signed off on the first round of disbursements, alongside the court-appointed Committee of Inspection.
He explained that the Victims’ Compensation Fund held $79 million, while approved claims totalled $1.7 billion. As a result, a 4.5 per cent distribution had been declared, amounting to $75 million. This meant victims would only recover a small fraction of their losses at that time.
The Financial Services Commission (FSC) had flagged SSL as far back as 2017 for a “culture of non-compliance and mismanagement of client funds”.
The latest developments follow months of public frustration from victims, including Bolt, who has openly criticised the pace and transparency of the investigation.
Bolt has publicly rejected suggestions that he was negligent in his dealings with SSL, noting that the brokerage was licensed by the FSC and counted several state entities among its clients.
Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness was also a client before giving instructions in September 2021 for his account at SSL to be closed.
Welljen’s account was opened at SSL in 2012 to support Bolt’s retirement. The 39-year-old left track and field after the 2017 World Athletics Championships.