Former BVI Speaker Julian Willock Arrested for Alleged Visa Waiver and Document Forgery Offences

Former House of Assembly Speaker Julian Willock has been arrested on charges related to document forgery and infractions involving visa waivers allegedly committed between 2018 and 2022.

He is currently out on $50,000 bail and is set to appear in the Magistrate’s Court on September 12.

The Royal Virgin Islands Police Force (RVIPF) confirmed in a statement on June 4 that the 56-year-old resident of Sea Cow’s Bay, Tortola, has been charged with several offences.

These include “one count of a Public Official Using his Office for Gratification, contrary to section 83 of the 2013 Criminal Code, one count of Conspiracy to Provide False Information to a Person Employed in a Public Service, contrary to sections 124 and 346 of the 2013 Criminal Code, and one count of Conspiracy to Uttering a Forged Document, contrary to sections 257 and 346 of the 2013 Criminal Code.”

According to the police statement, an 18-month investigation led by the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) Police Investigation Team focused on visa waivers issued between 2018 and 2022, as well as a forged document allegedly presented to the British Virgin Islands (BVI) Immigration Department in 2022.

The 2021 Commission of Inquiry, conducted by Sir Gary Hickinbottom , highlighted systemic issues, stating that “Almost everywhere, the principles of good governance, such as openness, transparency and even the rule of law, are ignored. In many important areas of government – including the procurement of contracts, grants of assistance, appointments to statutory boards, the disposal of Crown Land and the grant of residence and belonger status – discretionary decisions are made by elected officials (usually, Ministers) on the basis of no criteria, or patently inadequate and/or unpublished criteria, or criteria which are as often as not simply ignored.