Witness Missing? Extortion Charge Against Immigration Officer Dismissed 

An extortion prosecution against Immigration Officer Monique Escalante has ended without a trial after the man who accused her of taking US$3,000 could not be brought before the court. 

She was charged in March 2024 after Jamaican traveller Janhoi Shaun-Dhee Richards alleged that Escalante and two other unnamed immigration officers confronted him at the Philip Goldson International Airport. 

Richards claimed that when he insisted he had no money, the officers walked him to an ATM instead, where he withdrew $3,000 USD and handed it over.

Escalante had been on interdiction and out on bail since the case began after pleading not guilty and had remained on bail since her arrest. She was back before the High Court on Tuesday. 

The Crown had been unable to get Richards to respond despite attempts through several channels, including telephone, email and social media. Prosecutors therefore sought to have his earlier statement admitted as hearsay. 

Four witnesses appeared in the court during a voir dire hearing while lawyers argued the point.

Justice Pilgrim ultimately accepted a no-case submission from Escalante’s lawyer, Leslie Hamilton. With the central witness unavailable and his statement unable to carry the case forward, the Crown entered a nolle prosequi, and brought the proceedings to an end.