Syed gets 8 years for UCCI theft
(CNS): Hassan Iftikar Syed (51), the former president of the University College of the Cayman Islands (UCCI) who was convicted of stealing and defrauding the institution of over CI$700,000 of public money, was handed an eight-year prison term, Friday. Justice Phillip St John-Stevens, the visiting judge who presided over the case, described Syed as an “intelligent, persuasive, manipulative and dishonest individual”, as he delivered the ruling via video link.
The judge refused to give Syed credit for his time spent on remand in Switzerland while he awaited extradition as he said the former college boss had deliberately fled Cayman when he knew the “net was closing” in on his crimes.
The judge also limited the time that Syed could be credited for the period he spent on an electronic tag before his trial to just 127 days as he said that he had manipulated the system with a spurious defence and caused much of the delay in the case eventually being tried. He confirmed that the time Syed has spent in jail since he was convicted in March would be counted.
That means the one-time UCCI chief still has more than seven years to serve. Given the new rules that require all offenders to serve at least 60% of their time before being eligible for release, Syed should serve around four and half years more before he will face the conditional release board.
The judge also ordered that he should be deported after his release.
Calculating the sentence, the judge said he had taken into consideration Syed’s poor health and other mitigating factors. But he also considered the whole conduct of his offending from his dishonest claims over his PhD which secured him the top job at the college in the first place and enabled him to commit the crimes, through to his $200,000 theft on the credit card and the manipulation of documents and invoices that allowed him to defraud the college of around $701,000 in total, none of which has been repaid.
The crown is, however, seeking to recover some of the stolen cash and preparations are now underway for a confiscation process.
Category: Crime
Locking him up won’t do. Still many things happening we will never truly know whose behind what. Locals and Overseas Persons take advantage of things when the chance is right.
Hassan did more in one year than the current president has in 7 years of back peddling off of Hassans ideas. They can’t even finish a 7 year strategy without changing the goal-post so that they all go home as 1st place winners in their own eyes.
True dat. As pointed out in my commentary below, there were other reasons (aftermath of Ivan) that Hassan was able to gain the job. As this commentary correctly points out this is, along with the confusion that existed after the Hurricane, was another main reason Hassan was given the job of president at the time without his background being checked more thoroughly – he got things done…. This is not meant to excuse the actions of those who should have checked Syed’s credentials, but it explains why Syed was able to take the position without many questions being asked. Had Syed stayed in the position (and not appropriated the money), I truly believe that the College would be much further along than it is at this time. He wasn’t incompetent, he was dishonest.
syed is now living in Ladysmith, British Columbia,Canada. started a fine dining restaurant and owns a condo…I wonder where the money for these things came from?
his Ladysmith Condo is going up for sale in the next few weeks as he hasn’t been paying his strata fees.
Syed was promoted to the position of president not long after Ivan struck. It wasn’t immediately after, but while things were still in disarray and being sorted out. He took advantage of the situation by going to the College from morning til evening to help out with whatever was necessary. It was rather shrewd, as it built confidence in him. Who would question this hard-working expat who gave his all to the islands? And he wasn’t a bad professor either. Everything that followed was easy peasy. Professor, check. Degree, check. Doctorate, check.
At the time, Syed was married. It also helped that his wife at the time was a doctor; a legitimate doctor. The faculty and those in power to make the decisions met his wife and his family. So when he presented himself as having a Doctorate, it made sense and seemed to add up. Soon, or just before Ivan (I forgot), his wife left him and took their two children with her. Shortly after, Syed shacked up with a College professor.
Syed was not a dumb person. In fact, he was quite smart. He ran a good program, was hard-working for the most part, charismatic, confident, etc. Having said that, he was also a complete idiot. He could easily have lived an easy life on a good salary without many questions being asked. Instead he threw it all away for a bit of donkey, or its backside. Many brighter men than Syed made worst mistakes. Should have known better.
2:53, Sir Vassell will turn in his grave.
What does a book keeper have to do with this…?
Syed is not dumb, other computer lecturer realized that Syed did not have any serious computer science qualification and left UCCI when he became President, so he probably figured this person might have publicized it, so he cash in and ran. A person with only a BSc in Computer Science do not want to be teaching vocational certificate courses with not even CSEC pre-requisite, in computing. Syed taught only these courses and he was head of the Computing and Technology department and had a PhD. Anybody with some logical thinking would have picked that he does not have a PhD. Deep computing qualification means you want to be doing more and more complex or challenging stuff to keep current otherwise you lose all those knowledge you spent years accumulating, not wasting your time certificate courses. Stuff near or cutting edge, so you can publish in international journals. Educational advice which Syed was giving,he basically got them mostly from the Jamaicans Lecturers with many years educational experience and knowledge. Caymanians have to siege educational opportunities to them and prevent this happening again.
I think that allot more like him Syed should go to prison , because of all the corruption that is going on in the Islands . But sad to think that he would win his appeal because of what the Premier said before his verdict was given .
Did Syed have a Public defense Lawyer ?
Sharkey: you write about winning his appeal based on the Premier’s comments as if it were a foregone conclusion. I doubt that that will fly as the basis of appeal as the judge in his trial had determined that the jurors had not heard the remarks. Had they been aware of the Premier’s remarks that would have led to a mistrial.
Syed had help and collaboration from powerful officials. He fooled them with his slick talk and delivered what they wanted. He was contracted to write a negative report on a well funded education program with the sole intention to justify moving the money to be used for other projects. The end result was that the most creative and proactive program in education was aborted. IBM training and computers were replaced with defective used machines from Brazil, teacher training in Integrating technology into the curriculum stopped and we are back to reinventing the wheel.. I am really disgusted with what occurred. One day the full story would be told.
Syed later bo bo. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
6:46pm you are the kind of excrement Cayman needs to get rid of. Who built the infrastructure of the Cayman Islands, well fyi, it was the same stupid Caymanians you are referring to. It is now the same infrastructure that atttacks your pungent kind.
Remind me when this fake doctor was appointed head of the UCCI which Gov’t was in. Who was the Education Minister at the time? I cannot phanthom how this fraudster slip through the cracks in our Education System. Was the interviewers hypnotized? Did he automatically take up the post being he was already in the system? Was he trained accordingly to the Caymanian Myth. Just another expat who abused the system because of the ‘uneducated’ Caymanians. He was doctor of what! Please publish a copy of his CV must be very lengthy. Just let him serve the time and go home, damages already done.
Fathom + phantom = phanthom. Simple!
5:06 am: just do some research on the web — it is all there. Or are u so “uneducated”!
The Minister is responsible for policy directives. Its the civil servants and the Board of UCCI that interview and appointed him. The Board failed to ensure the process was followed.
Syed got accomplished more in one year than your current in 7 years of back peddling upon Syeds ideas. I hear they cant even fess up to not completeing a 7 year plan. They had to rewrite the thing cause the President is more about getting even and causing divisions and threatening and making cayman independent so people like his family can live a dictators life. SMH.
Maybe he was a phanthom.
Maybe you are a jerk. The poster’s point is clear.
There’s more that he was never made to answer for like ITALIC diverting and defunding the program to improve teaching and learning in the Cayman Islands.
$700.000 and my son never stole a dollar and got 20+yrs. TBC
What did he do then? Kill someone?
8:39 pm: your case is very thin. Need to provide more details.
In this case I think the judge did an excellent job. Syed has by no means gotten away– 8 years is substantial.
Ilike the fact that the judge did not give Syed credit for incarceration before he was returned to stand trial. Also that he has order deportation after release.
I am also heartened that the Crown is pursuing reparations through a confiscation process.
What is more, Syed now has a history readily available with a little Internet research.
He will have a difficult time regaining a similar professional standing in the future given the notoriety he has brought on himself.
By the way, this case shows enhanced competence on the prosecution side with prosecutors like Moran showing his skill and hard work. Kudos to him.
Syed had people calling him Dr Syed for many years and only teaching vocational courses, being Head of the Computer Department, and then President of UCCI. He won’t have a problems having people called him a different name from Hassan Syed and getting any job (and conning any organisation) in the future once he is no longer in the Cayman Islands.
Can me apply for PR when he comes out?
6:14 pm: read the above again. Third para from the end answers your question.
the Caymanian population at Northward prison is rickadiculous!
5:17 pm. Any your point is? The population of jails are usually populated by nationals.
Firstly , who to be blamed for the hiring of this fake doctor ? Was his credentials CV verified before he was hired? Who interviewed him for this job? Isn’t a Caymanian in his position now, so why wasn’t a Caymanian at the time being interviewed and given the job? Was he trained for this job? I guess not ! ! Where are his big friends ? All deserted him, such a pity! Probably he thought they were his genuine friends. Anyway this a lesson for hiring an expat to run such a sensitive instituions while there were qualified Caymanians who could have fill the post. Also to verify what ‘s on their CVS . Nothing fake. I wonder what he wrote for his thesis to obtain his doctorate! Was it how to defraud?
Deportee bwoi
More to this story than meets the eye!
Really? Pray do tell.
I wonder if his girlfriends, married and single, who were so besotted by him, will visit him.
Sorry but where there is no UCCI credit card swiping, Celebration Red Roses, Sandals Spa or Tiffany jewelry going around, there is no milk above or honey flowing down below.
This guy has to be one of the most dishonest people I’ve ever heard of. The excuses he made at his trial were laughable. Glad he’s being locked up. I hope they put a mirror in his cell so he can take a good long look at himself and the man he has become.
That’s because he thinks you and the rest of us are stupid.
the people that hired him should be locked up along with him. Also, don’t they have checks and balances that would have detected this fake before he did all this damage.
From the days of yore fakes have been ripping off Cayman and Caymanians and we still let them in here to make a joke of our people. Remember the story of Parker and the airline?!!!
Who was the minister of education when he was hired? Not sure how to find that information out.
3:36 pm: research the web.
Those people are too big to fail.
How about Cayman’s first and worst premier?
The money he stole plus the money spent on his trial, plus what going to be spent on him in jail will be nearly $ 2,000000 ( two million KYD) please correct me if i am wrong.
More like $1.2 million, but still a hell of a lot.
Nothing in life is free. Certainly not justice.
Good luck getting anything back, I am sure the cost of the trial is almost what he stole. Serve the time and be gone with yah.
The UCCI Board of Governors at that time failed to provide the appropriate oversight of the Syed Hassan as President and facilitated Syed’s actions. The evidence of former Chief Officer Angela Martins spoke volumes to the attitude towards Syed by the Minister of Education who extended much latitude to Syed.
This is another example of failings at multiple levels in the governance model. Interesting to note that all of this happened before the HSA and Ministry of health failings with Care pay case.
Why wasn’t there a clear reporting process and minutes to the board? It appears persons on the board in leadership roles seemed to accept every thing Syed said or did as did the Minister of Education at the time.
If not for the UCCI treasurer and his actions it would never have been stopped or questioned by the board and ministry officials. This is all part of the incompetence and systemic corruption in the Caymans.
2:43 pm: I am surprised at your attempt to exculpate the Chief Officer you mentioned. Chief Officers have a duty to stand up for principle when they see wrong being done. It is not good enough to retrospectively testify that the politician encouraged a perspective that she did not prescribe to. I was very unimpressed with the newspaper report that I read.
Chief officers without the requisite backbone are definitionally disqualified to serve in these positions.
But there is plenty of blame to go around — how about the outgoing president at the time who failed to verify that Syed even attended the university on Syed’s several trips to Canada (while he attended UCCI before his appointment to the presidency) in supposed pursuit of his PhD? Not to mention not requiring Syed to request that the university send a copy of his grades to the then President of UCCI? Fulfilling that basic due diligence would have averted this whole disaster.
Is stupid to give Government credit cards to Govt. officials in the first place, let them keep tab of their expenses and collect it back like all the rest of us. Just think of whom makes these rules/laws. Shame, shame.
Perhaps we can collect some of the reparation off the incompetents who hired him without confirming credentials.
He got off easy but better than nothing. He is a real thief, liar and fraud.
Alden’s boy.
Then he should be up in there with him too.
When Alden was the education minister he was enamored with Syed who was his pet genius and golden boy. Funny how no one in the ministry especially the minister wants to remember all the support given to Syed
Da wa ya get
1:48pm Our people put all of their trust in outsiders. They can tell them anything and they believe it. Their was an expat hired in an government department, who was interviewed oversees, employed and months after his employment he could not produce his credentials. Eventually the boss who interviewed him found out he was not qualified (could only give a letter as to the places/jobs) he had worked in and medical issues, too many for the record. Yet, they are better than the locals and more dishonest than, but are always allowed to get in through the back door.
He was fired, but the boss was awarded.
All 25000 of us? Get real. A few bad apples always spoil it for all, but you cannot generalize. That leads to hatred. Tell me there is no corruption here?
I don’t see the expats commenting in here though? Oh because it’s not about dirt bikes are youth ruining your afternoon. It’s one of you who has been stealing our money for your selfish reasons, and there is many more of you out there.
Muppet, how can you tell who is commenting when all comments so far are anonymous? As for me (expat) mine was the “da wa ya get” comment. If you know so much about these alleged criminal expat activities, please do tell the police, and I will be supporting you all the way. If on the other hand you just wanted an anti expat rant with no proof and only marl road information then just take a deep breath and control your feral instincts. I would also remind you that apart from one or two expats, most of the Northward population is indeed Caymanian. Kind of makes your comment hard to understand.
4:14 pm, because of dregs like you who can enter through the back door, and sideline Caymanians out of work. Stop PR, go back to the Cayman Protection board and send a clear message. You are here on a ‘permit’ it has an END date.
Do I need to say anymore. If I do, then, most of those in prison would be able to get jobs at the end of your and other permits.
4.14pm This country would still be just one big swamp if it wasn’t for expatriates. As for end date it’s time the British Govt gave you one – for mandatory independence, so you can run yourselves back into oblivion.
There is only one person in Cayman qualified to do my job, and that’s me. The dregs you refer to would be that closed mentality that can’t see the wood for the trees, has no arguement other than insult, and generally not civilized. Have a great ( if frustrated ) life.
There is some logic/basis to your comment but have you ever heard of any country in the world where it’s native population is in lesser numbers incarcerated, than other nationalities living in that country ?
Eg. Does the US, Canada, UK, South Africa, Australia, Philipines, India, Jamaica, Honduras etc…. have more of other nationalities than it’s own, in their prison ?
So it’s no surprise that we have more local criminals in our own prison than other criminals like Pakistani Sayed.
Since Caymanian means different things to different people, we as ancestral natives should start referencing ourselves as BELONGERS as they do in Bermuda and Turks & Cacios etc…
This makes for a much clearer understanding and distinction of “who is who” in our different Caribbean Islands.
“It’s” is always a contraction of “it is” or “it has”, never a possessive form of “it”. Think “his”, you wouldn’t write “hi’s”.
Apologies for the unavoidably offensive correction, but it is better that you know.
Peace.
You cannot compare cayman to a large country, economics are completely different.
Muppet, Expat #2 replying to your rather silly comment. Syed is a fraud and con man. He belongs at the northern hotel along with all your born and bred. Nobody is defending this creep, so stop the stupidity.
Like I said, feral anti expat, no foundation. 40m Englishman can’t be wrong.
Yeah, but look who brought him in.
My foreign friends…… this man is a thief, not only is he a thief he stole from kids and people working hard to achieve something. Not only local kids and adult foreign kids an adults. How can anyone be so evil to people.
Ask Jeff Webb. He stole from local kids too!
I’m an expat. I see from all the anti-expat comments just what you think of the people that have come here to live just like your ancestors did. You don’t like us because of what exactly? We work too hard? We are too smart? We make you feel foolish about your selves? We are taking your jobs? (the ones that would not be here if we all go) Please tell us what is the real reason. I already know. I just want to see if you do.
6;46 am, when Cayman was nothing you and the likes of you did not come, you only came when we Caymanians built up this country, so count your self lucky to be here now.
Not entirely correct. I believe it was our forefathers that bought you here, albeit in what would now be seen as a very controversial way. You built Cayman per our forefathers instructions. Do I agree with slavery? Absolutely not, it is evil. But historical facts are a little short from some commentators, like them or not.
Hmmm, you do seem to have a point.
Please can the chick who profited from her relationship with him, be made to pay back for all the car, jewellry etc. that was purchased with the people’s money as well? She is too busy flaunting around Cayman like her ish don’t stank, all while knowing full well that she is modelling stolen goods!
Sayed apparently discovered that Caribbean brown sugar baskets are much sweeter than French vanilla sundaes, even when covered in warm caramel and butterscotch.
He also paid off her student loans…
Justice is served another of these criminals who our system and stupidity allowed to proper here at the cost to our qualified Caymanians …
Good!
He will get off on appeal due to Premier Alden McLaughlin’s comments during the trial on talk radio
Don’t think so, 5:58. As I recall it, the judge in the case had determined that the jury luckily had not heard and therefore had not been influenced by the Premier’s comments.