THE HAGUE – The conviction of a former member of the Parliament of Sint Maarten for official bribery has been upheld by the Hoge Raad. The ruling, issued on January 27, 2026, makes both the conviction and the sentence final.
The case concerns the founder and leader of the United Sint Maarten Party, who served as a Member of Parliament until 2021. During his time in office, he was also a member of the permanent parliamentary committee for Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunications. Together with another individual, he founded the company Caribbean Value Estate Ltd, through which both became 35 percent shareholders in Advanced Communications and Technology Infrastructure Services N.V.
The Joint Court of Justice previously established that between December 2013 and September 2018, the former parliamentarian accepted bribes in connection with the purchase of a building for the government body Bureau Telecommunicatie en Post and related maintenance and renovation works. The court further found that between September 2013 and September 2019, he financially benefited as an indirect shareholder from a number plan management contract between Advanced Communications and Technology Infrastructure Services N.V. and the Bureau Telecommunicatie en Post, while simultaneously serving as a Member of Parliament and as a member of the relevant oversight committee. In that capacity, he exercised partial oversight over the functioning of the Bureau.
The Joint Court convicted the former parliamentarian of passive official bribery and of participating in contracts or supplies over which he had, at least in part, administrative authority or supervisory responsibility. He was sentenced to 19 months in prison and barred from being elected to any representative public office for a period of five years.
The defendant subsequently lodged an appeal in cassation with the Supreme Court, arguing, among other things, that the Joint Court had incorrectly ruled that he was entrusted with oversight of the contract between the Bureau Telecommunicatie en Post and Advanced Communications and Technology Infrastructure Services N.V.
In an advisory opinion issued on September 16, 2025, the Advocate General recommended that the Supreme Court uphold the ruling of the Joint Court.
In its judgment, the Supreme Court noted that the relevant criminal provisions in Sint Maarten are equivalent to those in the Netherlands and are intended to prevent civil servants from jeopardizing their impartiality by participating in contracts over which they exercise authority or supervision. Under the law, members of representative bodies qualify as civil servants, and participation in such contracts may be direct or indirect. The provisions therefore also apply where a civil servant has a personal financial interest, even without an active role in the contract.
The Supreme Court ruled that the Joint Court had correctly determined that, through his role as a Member of Parliament and as a member of the parliamentary committee, the defendant was entrusted with oversight of the minister responsible for telecommunications and of policy areas under that minister, including the Bureau Telecommunicatie en Post. According to the Supreme Court, the Joint Court’s conclusion that the defendant exercised supervisory authority over the relevant contracts and their financial consequences for the country was legally sound and sufficiently reasoned.
All cassation complaints were rejected, and the appeal was dismissed. With this ruling, the conviction and sentence are now irrevocable.
