00:00Antigua and Barbuda's government has confirmed former Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley's account
00:05of him being flagged at that country's airport, which essentially led to him being delayed while
00:10in transit to Montserrat. In fact, Antigua's Attorney General Stedroy Benjamin has stated
00:16that Dr. Rowley did not misstate what transpired and that he was flagged twice as he traveled to
00:23and from Montserrat through Antigua. He said he was unsure of how Dr. Rowley's name landed
00:28on Interpol's list and who would have placed it there, questions which have been redirected to
00:34this country. But on the flip side, Police Commissioner Alistair Guevara has stated that
00:39a check of Interpol's systems revealed that Dr. Rowley's name is not on any Interpol list.
00:46However, co-founder of the Police Social and Welfare Association, retired Corporal Dr. Wayne
00:51Haid says understanding the difference between Interpol's notices and diffusions is important.
00:58Dr. Haid, who is also an attorney at law, tells TV6 News, Interpol's various notices such as the Red
01:05Notice issued on the basis of things like the issuance of warrants for arrest are placed within
01:11Interpol's formal system and are widely disseminated. But diffusions are different.
01:17So they could use the formal method, the diffusion, which goes into the system as well. It's supposed
01:25to, but it often does not, because of two other aspects of informality and familiarity.
01:35There are people who work together with others. They train together. They interact with each other
01:43as police officers across different countries, and they can informally inform their friends
01:53and ask them to track a particular person when they reach in that country. And that happens a lot,
02:01much more than the notices are." And Dr. Haid reiterates that these remain
02:07off-record. Diffusions are used for different reasons, including when the issuing country wants
02:13to limit the dissemination of information or when there is insufficient evidence for a red notice to
02:19be issued. According to Dr. Haid, a diffusion, while physically off Interpol's system, can cause a flag
02:26to be raised at a point of entry into another country.
02:30Let's say Trinidad, Antigua, and telling the person,
02:34check this for me, see what this person is doing or going for me, and that person then could put it
02:40into their airport system. Not into Interpol, just into the airport system that will create a flag
02:48whenever that passport arrives." Interpol's website states that a diffusion can be sent directly by
02:55member countries to each other or through Interpol.
02:58It can happen minister to minister, minister to police, police to police, civilian to police.
03:07It can happen if you're talking about the informality. We can't confuse the Interpol process
03:14with the informal process." TV6 News attempted to reach Commissioner Guevara on Tuesday night
03:19and throughout Wednesday concerning the statement made by the Antiguan government.
03:24We were also seeking to inquire about the less formal Interpol system and whether the Commissioner
03:30was aware of any communication made through this channel, either by the TTPS or otherwise.
03:35All calls, WhatsApp, and text messages went unanswered.
03:40Alicia Boucher, TV6 News.
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