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Airport Deal Under Sustained Scrutiny

And while Jaen is a real estate agent by profession, according to Aviation Minister Junior Heredia, his group also works on airports:..

Hon. Manuel Heredia Jr., Minister of Tourism
"That group has a track record of doing several international airports including most recently in Curacao, recently completed."

We checked on the recent 35 million dollar Curacao International Airport terminal expansion project and it was undertaken by Curacao Airport Partners - not International Airport Alliance - which has no website on its letterhead.

The PUP today issued a release saying, quote, "The revelations that the 'Airport Investor and Developer' (has) a shady past including allegations of major fraud....should also come as no surprise.

The release snarkily adds, "The PUP takes the opportunity to inform the Barrow Administration of a little-known investigative tool called Google, which can provide valuable information on these so-called investors who target Belize - perhaps simply because our leaders have gotten a name for being very gullible and/or easily bought and paid for."

Channel 7

Holding Company for Developer Formed Just 1 Year Ago

The criminal past of Jorge Abraham Jaen, the Miami investor behind the multi-million dollar investment in the Basil Jones Airstrip to convert it into a full-scale international airport, continues to unravel. News Five has received copies of the Articles of Association for International Airport Alliance LLC, the apparent parent company of International Airport Alliance Belize Limited, based in Doral, Florida with a mailing address in Miami. The company was registered in October 2016. Jaen is listed as registered agent and manager along with one John Smith. With just over a year in existence, it lists the company's business as development and management of airports and hotel resorts and promotion of entertainment events. There is no record of the several international airports, including one in Curacao, named recently by Tourism Minister Manuel Heredia Junior as being part of the I.A.A. group's work. Jaen, as previously noted, has serious criminal convictions for such things as voter fraud, conspiracy to commit extortion and grand theft and obtaining property or credit through false statements. For its part, I.A.A. Belize has said that in respect of the allegations coming out of the 2006 Miami Dade County Inspector General's investigations, Jaen was not prosecuted. I.A.A. sent out a copy of the commendation received by Jaen from the office of former Miami city mayor Tomas Regalado for services to the community, which does not appear in the mayor's schedule. We were also directed to a link to what is purportedly a website for I.A.A., but there is very little information to be had about its projects and Jaen is not even mentioned by name. We will continue to follow this story.

P.U.P. Says Its Shades of Puerto Azul

There's more on the proposed international airport. The People's United Party today reacted to the announcement of a proposed multimillion dollar international airport on San Pedro. Calling it 'Déjà Vu All Over Again,' the P.U.P. says that the news that the investor is actually a realtor based in Miami with no experience in building or in airport development should come as "absolutely no surprise to Belizeans." It goes on to name previous instances where purported investors have been paraded with Ministers all too happy to pose to the cameras without doing due diligence. The P.U.P. notes that the 'Airport Investor and Developer' appears to be nothing more than a con-artist with a shady past that includes allegations of major fraud, voter fraud and extortion. The party says the airport pictures bring to mind the photos of senior U.D.P. Ministers Manuel Heredia Junior and Erwin Contreras as well as Kim Simplis Barrow photographed in Cannes with the failed developers and stakeholders at the launch of the botched mega-million-dollar exclusive resort, Puerto Azul. In a similar case, U.D.P. ministers were taken in by another conman, William Danny Mason, who reportedly had a "special bodyguard of police personnel, thanks to the then Police Minister John Saldivar. Mason was paraded in Belize as an Emergency Services expert, and almost every member of cabinet was a regular at his home in Belmopan….The U.D.P. ministers who loved Mason deserted the sinking ship like rats, but the country has paid the price." The release ends by saying that "the country cannot risk more fallout arising from the incompetence and stupidity of our U.D.P. Ministers."

Channel 5

Suspect investor in San Pedro?

Last Tuesday, the Government of Belize (GoB) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with International Airport Alliance Belize Limited to construct the Efrain Guerrero International Airport on Northern San Pedro, Ambergris Caye.

The total cost of this project, according to a statement issued by the Government Press Office, is USD$100 million.

The MOU was signed on behalf of GoB by Erwin Contreras, Minister of Economic Development, Petroleum, Investment, Trade and Commerce, while Jorge Abraham Jaen signed on behalf of International Airport Alliance Belize Limited.

Amandala has not been able to trace the origins of International Airport Alliance Belize Limited, however we have been able to scoop up background information on Jorge Jaen from the Miami Dade County Office of the Inspector General (OIG).

In 2006, Jaen was named in a memorandum titled, "OIG Investigation into Theft of Court System Funds, Uncovers another Fraud" which was published on October 26, 2006 by the Office of the Inspector General.

The memo revealed that several trained attorneys manipulated the court system in mortgage fraud schemes that victimized South Florida homeowners. Those attorneys were convicted as a result of an investigation dubbed, "Operation Foreclosure Vultures."

"Jaen's name surfaced during the investigation and upon further inquiry OIG Special Agents discovered that Jaen had submitted false information on a car loan application," said the memo.

He lied about his employment and salary and further lied about home ownership to obtain a car loan. He pretended that he owned a home which was actually mortgaged by his ex-girlfriend, Vanessa Ortega. Subsequently, he had been arrested for one count of "Grand Theft" in the Second Degree, and one count of "Obtaining Property or Credit through False Statements."

Information from the Office of the Inspector General website revealed that this was not the first time Jaen was involved in dishonest activities. In 1999, he was convicted for voter fraud. He falsely changed his name and address to vote in an election to re-elect City of Miami Commissioner Humberto Hernandez, who too was later sentenced to prison for four years by the Feds after confessing to offences related to election fraud.

On November 4, 1998, the New York Times reported that Jaen was convicted for "Conspiracy to Commit Extortion" after he was one of three men who collected cash from a bar owner in exchange for lax police enforcement and favorable treatment by the New York City zoning board.

Today, Amandala contacted Minister of Tourism, Manuel Heredia Jr., who claimed that there must be a mistake in the international media. Heredia Jr., claimed that Jaen was not the director of the company, that he was merely a financier. He then directed us to Minister Tracy Panton, who serves on the Cabinet's Sub-Committee for Investments.

In our telephone interview with her, she too claimed that the charges against Jaen were not true. She noted that potential investors are vetted by the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), and the Special Investigation Branch of the Central Bank of Belize. In the case of Jaen, he was vetted by the FIU which, according to Panton, revealed that he had not been convicted or charged with any offence.

When we asked Panton if she had seen the report from the Office of the Inspector General of Miami-Dade County, she told us she hadn't.

Amandala

Who's really behind San Pedro airport project?

The sudden unraveling of Jorge Jaen's dubious past has set tongues wagging. The Miami-based developer has managed to wangle a memorandum of understanding for a multi-million dollar development project for the Efrain Guerrero International Airport in San Pedro.  A little digging by local media has uncovered previous convictions for fraudulent activity in the U.S. dating as far back as 1999, and his company appears to be only recently formed.  There are, however, even more questions than answers about Jaen's mysterious partners, who came to his defense earlier this week.  Also, what did the government - minister of Economic Development Erwin Contreras and his deputy Tracey Taegar-Panton, and of tourism Manuel Heredia Junior - know and how soon? All of this provides for a troubling stew according to attorney Eamon Courtenay.

Eamon Courtenay, P.U.P. Senator

"Quite frankly, the press release that has been issued by the company has raised more questions than answers. What we really want to know - at least the People's United Party wants to know - is who are the main players in this company? It can't be the gentleman who is now exposed for what he is; he is one of others. Because if you read the press release, they don't identify who they are, but they say we brought him in, we tolerated and allowed him to come into the company. So who are the people who have experience in airport development, in airport management, in airport operations? I would like to see and I believe all Belizeans would like to see the business plan that would support such a massive investment in north Ambergris Caye, around which there is absolutely no facilities, nothing. one hopes that the Government has done its due diligence; if it has done its due diligence, it means that the Government knew who they were dealing with. As far as I am aware, the Government has not issued any press release, they have not made any comment since the information has become public about the man's character. The question is, is this the type of persons that Belize wants to do business with? You see, these things, at first sight, may seem trivial, but I can tell you this: there is going to be a problem if they proceed with this with this gentleman. An airport is a hyper-sensitive area in any country. It is a point for serious illegality. I would suspect that the international organizations that deal with airports - I would suspect that international airlines are going to look very carefully at whether or not an airport is being developed by a person who is not fit and proper, and if a person is not fit and proper, they are not going to issue the regulatory certificates that are necessary for planes to land there and for the airport to operate. This is a serious matter; a very serious matter."

Channel 5

Getting to the bottom of the airport developer mystery

News Five continues to follow the developing story of developer Jorge Jaen's dubious past and what it means for his multi-million dollar development project for the Efrain Guerrero International Airport in San Pedro. Jaen has previous convictions for fraudulent activity in the U.S. dating as far back as 1999, and his company appears to be only recently formed. There is pressure on the government to avoid a repeat of the Puerto Azul fiasco and to say what it knows and how it intends to follow up the situation. But P.U.P. leader John Briceño fears it's the same old story: U.D.P. hustling.

John Briceño, Leader, P.U.P.

"If you can remember a few years ago, ministers were posing with actors and the paparazzi in Cannes, where they had the Puerto Azul project, and we found out that it was basically a Ponzi scheme. Now we have here another gentleman that comes in and makes these pie in the sky promises, that he's going to raise a hundred million dollars, U.S., to build an airport on Ambergris Caye; and now we're finding out that this man has been suspected of committing fraud, not once, but several times. We're finding out that the company that they own has no history in any kind of airport development or any kind of history in developing big projects because this is a massive project. And on the part of the Government, here we have the Government signing on to something - because I've got a feeling that some people believe that it is a 'quick-rich' scheme for them. The ministers and the U.D.P. cronies and their hangers-on believe that if we can move a hundred-million dollar project some of us can make some money from it. But have we done the proper studies? Have we done the engineering studies that is needed to be able to build an airport in Ambergris Caye? Where are we going to get the massive amount of landfill that we'd have to be using? How is it going to affect the people from San Pedro, San Pedraños, our local airlines? So there are many questions that should have bene answered before we signed an M.O.U. Once again, we believe that it is a hustle from some people in the Dean Barrow U.D.P. government."

Channel 5

DPM Faber Says Basil Jones Is Legit

While a statement from International Airport Alliance says that Jaen has never been prosecuted, it still raises major concerns about the legitimacy of his partnership with Belize and the future of the Airport. Today we asked Deputy Prime Minister Patrick Faber about it and he says all this might just be mischief making - people trying to jeopardize the project. Here is how he put it.

Courtney Weatherburne, reporter
"Regarding the new airport on San Pedro, there is some questionable information or documents that have surfaced regarding the South Florida investor Jorge Jaen. They are questioning in terms of his past there are several allegations that he is a con man. How are you guys dealing with this? Have you all done your own investigation and if so how will you more forward with this? Is the information actually true?"

Hon. Patrick Faber, Deputy Prime Minister
"I am not able to say. Actually the last meeting if the cabinet sub-committee on investment I was out of the country. I think it was around the time I was in Antigua for Cuba CARICOM and so I really did not have a chance to see, but what I can tell you is that the cabinet sub-committee on investment aided by Beltraide and headed by Minister Tracey Panton - we do our due diligence. So there are thorough checks. Things are in such a way that things happen way back in the past, but because of course of those who are trying to make mischief they go and dig up things from way back in the past."

Courtney Weatherburne, reporter
"Apart from as you said mischief, you said that the committee did do their background. They did the due diligence and all of that. Did the information first of all did they stumble upon this information in his past and then also didn't that raise any red flags?"

Hon. Patrick Faber, Deputy Prime Minister
"This is why I am telling you I may not be the best person to ask, as I was not at that last meeting. What is for certain is that we have no negative intention. We want to build the best possible airport in the northern Ambergris to serve not only Ambergris Caye but the wider Belizean population and we will continue to look for information to make sure that we have the right people and if for some reason there is a misstep in that direction, then we will correct that."

As you heard, Faber directed us to Minister Tracey Panton and her committee to get the full scope of the background check that was done on Jaen. We will keep following this story.

Channel 7

An International Airport on Ambergris Caye: Really? Who Does this Benefit?

Over the past few months, I've heard tour guides and taxi drivers, hotel reps and marketers talk about this airport as a real thing. I've received many inquiries about the timing, about property values way up north, asking when the road construction will start. Not just a possibility but something that is on the verge of happening. A real reason to visit and invest in Ambergris Caye.

Which leads me to this glaring question: What possible sense does a $100,000,000USD+ airport make on our island and to our country? And CAN this airport be built? Would $100 million US dollars be enough? Ie. Is it economically and geographically possible? With no infrastructure - road, water, sewage, housing in the proposed area….not to mention customs, immigration, a fire department, a hospital…we haven't even talked about air and noise pollution…how could this happen?

There is also the question: who does this benefit? I can argue that it is not the people of Ambergris Caye - at all. It's not even the people of Belize. I decided to try to look at it methodically and ask for a bit of expertise. I met with Steve Schulte, the CEO of Tropic Air Belize, for a better understanding of all the parts that go into this.

Tropic Air Boss Says Basil Jones Airport Project Will "Never Happen"

And the busiest route for Tropic and Maya Island is from PGIA to San Pedro. But, if the Basil Jones Airport project on northern Ambergris Caye does go through - would it cut off the main source of revenue for Belize's local airlines? We got input from both sides:...

Jules Vasquez- Reporter
"If a Basil Jones International Airport is built, then all of this goes to nothing because COPA could fly directly into the International Airport there. I am saying that, how do you all manage these competing interests, when clearly an international airport at Basil Jones would work against Tropic and Maya?"

Hon. Manuel Heredia Junior- Minister of Tourism
"Definitely not Jules, under the present agreement with PGIA, any existing airline that is flying cannot divert to any other airport in Belize. This airport that we are doing is to one, have European charters coming in to Belize, to have private aircraft and then later on we will see if there are possibilities of new destinations. Lufthansa, as soon as they heard about the possibilities of building an airport, have approached this company already you know. They want to know a little more and have this interest of flying in. So, that opens the door to other carriers. What we want is that if we are doing almost 400 thousand, within the next five years we want to double that amount."

Jules Vasquez
"What happens if indeed as is planned, they open an international airport up north in the Basil Jones area? Copa can just say, well we will just fly directly to San Pedro, who needs Tropic Air?"

John Greif III
"Jules I just don't see that happening. To me and I hope no one gets offended, it seems like a pipeline drain that just…who is going to raise $100 million US for a service that really isn't needed anyway? I mean, it is so easy because of the incredible competition you have between Maya and Tropic to get to anywhere in Belize now. Why would Copa do that? So, I don't see it happening, ever."

Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with International Airport Alliance, but Heredia says they have to get clearance from the DOE and submit their plans to government for approval before there is any, quote, "definitive agreement."

Sans San Pedro To PGIA Route, Air Infrastructure Network Would Collapse

The other issue with the proposal for a new international airport on Northern Ambergris Caye is that it could severely cut into one of the main routes for local carriers. This, in turn, could undermine the entire domestic air transport infrastructure. If it sounds a bit highfalutin, Grief broke it down into dollars and sense:...

John Greif III, President Tropic Air
"The only two truly profitable airplane routes in Belize are Goldson to Placencia and Goldson to San Pedro. And Goldson to San Pedro is three or four times the volume of Placencia. Placencia adds a little more because it's a little more expensive per mile. But without those lengths, there is no more San Pedro to Corozal, there is no more Belize Municipal to PG, there is no more...any of the other domestic flights disappear. The backbone of Belizean aviation is essentially San Pedro to International. If that goes, so goes the industry."

Channel 7

Another Airport on Ambergris Caye?

On Thursday, the Diario de Quintana Roo in Chetumal quoted the Honorary Consulate of Belize in Quintana Roo, saying that the construction of the international airport in San Pedro has been given the green light and all that is left, is a date for works to begin. That piece of information, says the Mexican newspaper, came from Luis Maldonado, the honorary consul. So while there is a new agreement between COPA Airlines and Tropic Air, is there competing interest on the part of government in supporting this partnership? G.O.B., it is known, has also shown support for the Basil Jones International Airport in north San Pedro. So essentially, if the multimillion-dollar project is to go ahead, the new agreement with the local airline becomes moot.  Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation, Manuel Heredia Junior says not so fast.

Manuel Heredia Jr., Minister of Tourism

"Under the present agreement with P.G.I.A., any existing airline that is flying, you cannot divert to any other airport in Belize; otherwise, we will be liable and can be taken to court. This airport that we are doing is to one, to have European charters coming to Belize, to have private aircrafts and then later on we will see if there is the possibilities of new destinations coming to Belize. I think you've heard with the previous administration that Lufthansa should have been the ones running this airport. Lufthansa, as soon as they heard about the possibilities of building an airport, has approached this company already, you know. That they want to know a little more and they have that interest to flying there. So that opens the door to other carriers; that is our interest to see new carriers. What we want is if we are doing almost four hundred thousand, within the next five years, we want to double that amount. And that can only happen if there is an alternative airport that can bring additional carriers to this airport-not taking away anything from Tropic or Maya nor from the P.G.I.A.; and legally, we cannot do it."

Channel 5