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PAULA GORDON, STAR Writer
The 36-year-old man who claimed that his car was seized by the Transport Authority and sold without his notification over three years ago is yet to receive any redress from the company.
"Mi wah mi money now, is three years odd mi a wait, how long dem ago draw out di ting fah," an upset Alromeo Brown told THE STAR recently.
Brown is currently seeking compensation from the company for the loss of his vehicle and tools of trade, which he says were stored within his car at the time it was seized.
When the matter was reported in July, Brown said that an offer of $250,000 was made, however, he was not willing to accept that.
According to Brown, he recently received a letter from the Transport Authority with a new figure. That figure he says will not be accepted either.
"Dem send a letter with a figure but mi nuh want dah payment deh. Dem a di one suppose to pay my lawyer fees. Plus what happen to payments for the loss of use of my vehicle. Me couldn't go tek dat from them, dem affi do far better," he said.
He claims that since the offer was rejected, no contact has been made with his attorney.
It was reported that on Monday, July 7, 2008 about 1:30 p.m., Brown, a refrigeration technician, parked his 1992 blue Toyota Camry motor car near the Portmore Mall, St Catherine, to check the vehicle.
He said that while there, a police bus drove up and requested a search of the vehicle. Following the search, he was arrested and charged with operating his motor vehicle as a PPV without a road licence.
It is understood that the matter was brought before the Spanish Town Resident Magistrate's Court and he was sentenced to three months' imprisonment for forgery after it was later found that his insurance documents were fake.
In regards to operating his car as a PPV without a licence, the case was dismissed and on April 6, 2009, an order was made for the car to be released. However, when he went to pick up the car it was found that the car was auctioned.
"Dem tek poor people a dis county fi idiot. The next time this matter go court me ago talk to the judge miself, me nah disrespect the lawyer but a me a feel wha me a feel, me a di only one inconvenience," he reasoned.
In July, Operations Manager at the Transport Authority, Cecil Morgan, told THE STAR that he was not familiar with the specific case but that the Transport Authority could not be held liable.
He said that: "Under the Transport Authority Act vehicles which are in the pound for over six months if they are not claimed by the owners are likely to be auctioned. We had an auction sometime in 2008, so it is likely that his car could have been sold."
He also said that the Transport Authority would not have known that Brown was convicted and was in prison when his car was being auctioned.
