PHILIPSBURG--BlueMarine Residences, owned by Saro Spadaro of the Maho Group, confirmed over the weekend that an unsuccessful attempt was made to extort money from the company in mid-2009 by parties affiliated with Blue Blood Construction, a company owned and operated by an inspector at the Environmental Development and Property Management ROB department.
In an invited statement, a representative of the Maho Group confirmed that BlueMarine had been approached by Blue Blood Construction. However, it was made clear that BlueMarine had not conducted any business with Blue Blood Construction, was unaware of any investigations, and would be at the full disposal of authorities, should they require any information.
Blue Blood operators had allegedly tried to extort a large amount of cash in return for getting the inspection of the residences approved. Reportedly, Blue Blood had submitted an invoice in the amount it was attempting to extort. High-ranking Government officials had been immediately notified by BlueMarine.
The Island Government Departments of Personnel and Legal Affairs have been investigating the incident, but thus far, no action has been taken against the inspector.
BlueMarine Residences broke ground in late 2006, and Building A was sold out within a record 24 hours. With a long waiting list in hand, the architects were sent back to the drawing table to design additional buildings. With more than 80 per cent sold out, townhouses and condos (featuring all the extras) are now available for purchase starting at US $199,000.
