COUPLE ARRESTED IN HEART PAYROLL SCAM

The Major Organised Crime & Anti-Corruption Agency (MOCA) raided the home of Michael Anthony (32 y-o) and Anna-Kay Tameka Tyrell (32 y-o) of Westphalia District St. Andrew in the early hours of Tuesday, September 7th. The couple, along with a third suspect Tasha Bucknor are accused of defrauding HEART of over JA$5million.

A MOCA agent conducting a search of the Westphalia District, St. Andrew premises on Tuesday, September 7, 2021.

A total of thirty three (33) irregular payments were unearthed during an audit exercise of the Payroll Department at HEART for the 2018 period. These payments, which amounted to a total of JA$8.1million, were processed for fake part-time employees. Employee account information was manipulated on HEART’s HR Plus system to be paid to the accounts of persons not employed to HEART. Michael and Anna-Kay Tyrell as well as Tasha Bucknor actively recruited individuals whose accounts were utilized for this scheme. All three persons had also received monies that were attained from this operation collectively amounting to JMD $5,143,233.63.

Investigations are continuing to determine if other persons were involved in the scheme. The Tyrell’s were both charged with Larceny as a Servant, Conspiracy to Defraud and Money Laundering, while Tasha Bucknor was also charged with Receiving Stolen Property and Conspiracy to Defraud. All three were transported to the Cross Roads Police Station and were each offered station bail in the sum of One Hundred and Fifty Thousand Jamaican Dollars ($150,000). They are set to appear before the Kingston and St. Andrew Parish Court on Friday September 24, 2021.