Trinidadian businessman Dominic Hadeed and his wife, Genevieve Hadeed, will remain in prison after the Court of Appeal yesterday ruled that the interim stay granted on Thursday will remain in force while the State pursues an appeal to the UK Privy Council.
The Trinidad Express said that in a unanimous decision, Chief Justice Ronnie Boodoosingh and Justices of Appeal Mark Mohammed and Ricky Rahim dismissed the Hadeeds’ application to discharge the stay, ruling that the balance of justice favoured keeping the couple in custody until the Privy Council considers the matter.
Delivering the ruling, the court said it was required to weigh the competing consequences of either course of action.
According to the newspaper report, the judges stated that if the Hadeeds were released and the allegations of an ongoing conspiracy proved to be true, the potential harm to the public interest would outweigh the prejudice caused by their continued detention for a short period pending the Privy Council hearing.
The panel therefore ordered that the stay remain in place, meaning the Hadeeds will continue to be detained despite Thursday’s Court of Appeal ruling directing their release under strict house arrest conditions.
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