Bahamas opposition presses for probe after US court links unnamed politician to drug case

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Figures on the opposition benches in the Bahamas are calling for a formal investigation into a man described as a suspected drug trafficker who lived through a recent aircraft accident close to Florida and was reportedly discovered with about US$30,000, a US federal investigator has said. The cash sat in a bag marked with the name of a senior public figure from the island chain who has not been named.

The man, sent back to the Bahamas more than ten years ago following convictions for drug offences and money laundering, faces accusations of moving cocaine via the Bahamas into the United States.

He is further accused of sitting down with the unnamed politician in October 2024 inside the Bahamian Parliament in Nassau to discuss a transaction centred on roughly 1,000 kilogrammes (2,200 pounds) of cocaine, according to papers lodged on 14 May in the Southern District of New York—one day after the crash. Those filings say the politician “could provide security for the planned cocaine shipment” and was presented to another unnamed party as a “future associate.”

The claims add fresh pressure on Nassau at a time when its police chief stepped down in December 2024 after a sergeant and two other officers were charged in what the US Justice Department then described as “a massive cocaine conspiracy enabled by corrupt Bahamian government officials.”

Michael Pintard, who heads the opposition Free National Movement, said on Monday that he doubts the country’s prime minister—returned to office on the same day as the plane crash—will ensure anyone faces consequences.

“We issued warnings about the close relationship between members of this administration and characters of interest to police locally and internationally,” he told reporters.

Latrae Rahming, speaking for the prime minister’s office, sent a written response to The Associated Press on Tuesday saying the administration treats the issue “extremely seriously.” It said Bahamian police would open their own review and that officials would contact US counterparts to request shared intelligence and any evidence on hand, while stressing that no official notice had named any public office-holder in the matter.

“The position of the Government of The Bahamas remains wherever wrongdoing is established, any person involved will be held accountable without fear or favor, and the chips will fall where they may,” the statement read.

In a deposition, US Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent Michael Coleman said several trafficking networks move shipments “under the protection of local officials” in the Bahamas.

He claimed the crash survivor runs a company through which he seeks Bahamian state construction work and washes proceeds from narcotics sales.

Coleman said the man was among eleven people who escaped the wreck off Florida’s coast late last week, was picked up at sea, and was later taken into custody.

The agent said the DEA has been probing trafficking groups active in jurisdictions that include the Bahamas since about 2022.

Dr Duane Sands, who chairs the Free National Movement, told The Nassau Guardian on Monday that the sitting government was damaging the country’s reputation and urged a commission of inquiry.

“The Bahamian people are entitled to know,” he was quoted as saying. “The heart and soul of our country are at stake.”