Asked on a Friday in late January 2023 whether he was “broke,” Usain Bolt laughed. “I’m not broke, but it’s definitely put a damper on me,” the retired sprinter told reporters in San Juan, Puerto Rico, the Associated Press reported.
The damper in question was $12.7 million. That sum had gone missing from his account at Stocks and Securities Limited, a private investment firm in Kingston. His lawyers put the balance at nearly $12.8 million before it shrank to some $12,000. Bolt said he had no idea how it happened, and that the money “was for my future.” He has three children, he said, and parents he still supports.
A fraud that ran for over a decade
Authorities describe the alleged scheme as a massive one that began more than a decade ago. The company itself contacted the authorities earlier in January to say a manager had apparently committed fraud. Officials have also said that clients received false statements about their balances. How many clients were hit, and how much is missing in total, had not been announced.
Bolt was not the only casualty. Finance Minister Nigel Clarke said several government agencies and elderly customers were also affected. “It’s always a sad situation. Definitely disappointed,” Bolt said of the older victims. “Everybody’s confused. … I’m as confused as the public.”
Regulators reshuffled, no bailout
The regulator took the political hit first. Earlier that week Clarke announced that the director of the Financial Services Commission was stepping down, and that the Bank of Jamaica would take over regulation of the island’s financial system. Jamaica also asked the FBI and other unnamed international experts for help with the investigation.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness ruled out rescuing the firm. “The government will not socialize any debt, and we will not socialize the failure of our banks,” he said.
Bolt’s response
Bolt said he had fired his business manager, and that the parting was not friendly. His attorneys gave Stocks and Securities Limited until that Friday to return the money or face civil and criminal action. It was not clear by late Friday whether any step had been taken. Attorney Linton P. Gordon did not return a message from the AP, but told the Jamaica Observer that the public should expect “the expected and the unexpected.” He added: “We have met with persons, and we are dealing with certain matters.”
The firm did not respond to the AP’s request for comment.
Earlier on Friday, Bolt had spoken at a sponsored luncheon for an upcoming relay. “I’ve been going through a tough week, a few tough weeks,” he said, and promised to keep working to lift up his island. “No matter what’s going on right now, Jamaica is my country. That will never change.”
Away from the microphones he was plainer still. He was trying to focus on his family, he said, and “not to think too much about it because it’s a difficult situation.”
