I was never fired, I resigned – Dr Ubaldus Raymond

In the midst of an ongoing investigation into government Minister Richard Frederick, the nature of which has yet to be officially disclosed by police, references have been drawn to incidents involving a former United Workers Party (UWP) minister.  

The opposition UWP has called for Prime Minister Phillip J Pierre to relieve Frederick of his ministerial duties pending the investigation. Some within the party have drawn reference to the former Public Service Minister Dr Ubaldus Raymond matter, whom they claim was fired by then Prime Minister Allen Chastanet, who had also called for an investigation into Raymond’s alleged wrongdoings.

However, on Thursday, Ubaldus Raymond called in to Newsspin on Hot 97 to assert that he was never fired, nor was there any investigation surrounding him. The comments came after he was referenced by several callers to the show.

In 2017, two young women were charged with blackmail after nude photos purported to be of Dr Raymond surfaced, along with intimate text messages. The matter was resolved after the women, who were 18 at the time, apologised before the court.

In another incident, this time in 2019, following explicit leaked audio recordings between Dr Raymond and a Trinidadian woman, he proceeded on leave, as noted by the Attorney General’s Chambers, before Prime Minister Allen Chastanet later formally accepted his resignation.

“So to put on record and put it on your show, to say that I was dismissed by Allan Chastanet is wrong. I have heard it many times, but I decided to call you this time around,” Raymond told the News spin host Thursday.

“I resigned,” he reiterated, “I was not dismissed.”

“And do you know when I resigned? When I thought there was an investigation?” he further asserted.

“The record will show that there was no investigation; had I known that there was no investigation, I would not have resigned. But based on principle, I believe that if you are under investigation as a government minister, I think you should step aside and allow the investigation to continue; that’s the reason why I resigned.”

Dr Raymond went on to say that those who continued to perpetuate these untruths understood the implications these words were having on his professional reputation.

“… I am calling to make it clear that I have never been, first of all, never been accused of any wrongdoing. No one has had any allegations against me… my record is clear as far as accusations are concerned, nothing like that has ever happened because I have never gone out of my way to do anybody any wrong,” he went on to say.

“A wrong was committed against me, hence the reason the police acted at that time to arrest two individuals. And these two individuals later apologised to me in court.”

The former government minister said he had remained quiet for too long and had not defended his name and his reputation.

St. Lucia Times later spoke to Dr Raymond, who said news reports purporting he was under investigation, and which remain available on the internet, were hurting his professional career. He also showed two letters, one from the Attorney General’s Office and another from the Commissioner of Police, confirming that he was never under investigation.

The first letter, dated January 4, 2023 and addressed to Raymond’s legal representative, read in part: “The Office of the Attorney General is not, however, conferred with investigative powers, and as such, no investigation was conducted by Chambers pertaining to Mr Raymond”.

The second letter, dated July 2, 2025, was issued in response to Raymond’s request for clarification from the Commissioner of Police as to: (1) whether the RSLPF had ever conducted an investigation into him; (2) whether there were any pending investigations involving him; and (3) whether there was any intended prosecution against him.

Police Commissioner Verne Garde wrote back: “After a thorough review of our internal records and all investigative departments, the Office of the Commissioner of Police informs you that there are currently no criminal or ongoing investigations in regards to you. Consequently, there are no plans for prosecution against you. Furthermore, there is nothing adverse or otherwise found to discredit you.”