Loor appears in court,
Judge extends detention
PHILIPSBURG--Arrested Police Commissioner Marcel Loor was heard by a Judge in the Court of First Instance on Thursday, who determined that “all procedures regarding his arrest had been followed in accordance with the law.”
As a result, a request filed on Wednesday by the Prosecutor’s Office for an eight-day extension of Loor’s pre-trial detention has been granted and has gone into effect.
Chief Prosecutor Taco Stein wants to have Loor transferred to Curaçao to be kept in a special section of Bon Futuro Prison, used primarily for detaining civil servants. However, reliable reports reaching The Daily Herald, said Loor’s lawyers were likely to file an injunction to block his being transferred to Curaçao.
Stein said Thursday, “If he is kept here on St. Maarten at the Police Cells or in Pointe Blanche, I can’t guarantee his safety, which is why I wish to send him to Curaçao.”
Stein also said: “Loor has the right to challenge such a decision. I have already informed the Judge that I wish to send him to Curaçao.” Stein also said Loor’s attorney Richard Gibson Jr. would likely file a petition on Loor’s behalf against the planned transfer to Curaçao, but he was not certain if and when that matter would be handled.
He said such appeals usually relate to claims by the suspect that his family life would be interrupted and his visitation rights might be affected, as it could be costly for his family to travel to Curaçao to visit him.
Loor, who has been charged with forgery and accepting bribes, was taken to the Court House in Philipsburg Thursday in keeping with what Stein said, was a routine exercise when persons are detained.
According to Stein, the Judge usually reviews all details of the arrest to ensure that the correct procedures had been followed. He explained that the Prosecutor’s Office had the right to issue the first warrant for Loor’s arrest and that generally such a warrant would last for two days.
When the two-day warrant expires, a second warrant has to be issued for an extension of pre-trial detention for a period of eight days. However, before the two-day detention period expires, the suspect must be taken before the Judge who has to verify that all procedures have been followed in respect of the arrest.
Once this has been done, the suspect then continues serving his eight-day pre-trial detention. Loor was arrested on Tuesday morning at his home in St. John’s Estate on suspicion of forgery and accepting bribes.
