The trial involving four witnesses who failed to appear before the commission of enquiry into the collapse of CL Financial will starts on October 1. Former CL Financial finance director Andre Monteil, former CIB president Richard Trotman, former CIB president Lennox Archer and former CIB vice-president Mala Gandhi appeared before Chief Magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar in the Port-of-Spain Eighth Court yesterday. They pleaded not guilty to the allegations that they had failed to appear before the Clico commission of enquiry. Ayers-Caesar then set the date for the trial.
The summonses for the four to appear were issued on behalf of Judith Gonzalez, secretary to the commission. Gonzalez filed the complaint on instructions from its chairman Sir Anthony Colman, under Section 33 of the Summary Courts Act. Monteil was represented by Michelle Solomon Baksh, led by Sophia Chote and instructed by Kimberly Mulligan; Chris Selochan represented Trotman, while Archer and Gandhi were represented by attorneys Rishi Dass, Dharmendra Punwasee and Leslie-Ann Assee.