I beat States bullies

AFTER a court case against him collapsed, a company director yesterday claimed that he was being bullied by the island's authorities. Paul Moed - a director of SCC Lodgings, which runs St Clare Court in Brock Road - was prosecuted in the Magistrate's Court over unauthorised signs in front of the lodging house.

But, following advice from two senior Law Officers, the cases against Mr Moed and the company were withdrawn in the courtroom.

After the hearing, Mr Moed accused the Environment Department and its predecessor, the Island Development Committee, of picking on him.

'Basically I think I've just been totally vindicated; they had no right to bring this prosecution,' he said.

The IDC had picked on him, he said, because of his previous run-ins with it.

'If you stand up and fight them because they are wrong, you can succeed.

Mr Moed had gathered 150 signatures on a petition before his court appearance. He faced a fine of up to £10,000 and six months in prison.

Many businesses displayed similar signs without the threat of prosecution, he said, and to remove them would have put the business at a disadvantage against its competitors.

Mr Moed said that because SCC Lodgings did not own the property or its contents and he was an employee of the company and not directly involved in the day-to-day running of the premises, neither should have been taken to court.

Environment had a duty to ensure it was prosecuting the right people for the right reasons and was therefore guilty of an abuse of process, he said.

He believed an apology was in order.

'Too much of my time has been taken up with this ridiculous process.

'I've had 15 months of sleepless nights as I was facing a prison sentence, but I was prepared to go to jail over this.'

Mr Moed said that in his election campaign, Environment minister Bernard Flouquet had said that he would personally vet minor infractions and they would proceed to criminal court only with his approval.

Last week, Mr Moed wrote to Deputy Flouquet to ask if he had personally vetted the files relating to his case. He said he had yet to receive an answer from the minister.

Deputy Flouquet was unavailable for comment yesterday, but a spokesman said: 'The Environment Department does not comment on specific cases, but strongly rejects any suggestion that it picks on or victimises individuals.

'On a general note, it is important to remember that in instances where the department has received a large number of complaints, then of course it has a duty to investigate these and take what action may be appropriate.'