Offshore Alert Publisher Responds To Mac

David Marchant

Tuesday, March 16, 2004

Offshore Alert publisher David Marchant responded to statements made by Leader of Government Business, the Hon McKeeva Bush, in the Legislative Assembly last week by saying he fully intends to defend the libel suit filed by Ritz-Carlton developer Michael Ryan.

"Mr Bush's insinuations that I have 'refused to accept service' of Michael Ryan's libel writ and that I will not be defending this baseless action are false," he said in a written statement last Friday, "The writ was only served on our corporate representative yesterday (11 March) and he gladly accepted service of it."

Last month, Mr Ryan, through his local attorneys Hunter & Hunter, filed a libel suit in Cayman Islands Grand Court as a result of an Offshore Alert article that dealt with a lawsuit filed in January by the now terminated general contractor Fluor Daniel Caribbean Ltd against the Ritz Carlton development company. The story also mentioned other companies and projects Mr Ryan has been involved with in other countries.

After the issuance of the libel writ, Offshore Alert published two more articles on 29 February concerning the Ritz-Carlton project and Mr Ryan. One of those articles claimed that Mr Bush personally had received over $345,000 in payments from the Ritz. Mr Bush has subsequently said those payment were commissions for his real estate company.

Mr Marchant told Cayman Net News that he looked forward to a public hearing of the libel allegations filed against him. "Unfortunately for Mr Ryan and, I would suggest, Mr Bush, I will be defending the complaint that has been filed in the Cayman Islands and I look forward to a public examination of Mr Ryan's business activities, including his relationship with Mr Bush, a relationship which I am determined will be explored to the full."

During Mr Bush's statement on the matter to the Legislative Assembly, he commented that Mr Marchant had "mysteriously showed up in the United States with the necessary funding to start the Internet publication known as Offshore Alert." 

Mr Marchant scoffed at the remark, and suggested that Mr Bush had watched too many episodes of Star Trek. "I was not 'beamed up' to the US from another planet, as his comment suggests; I arrived there on an airplane from the United Kingdom, where I am from, with a ticket booked under my own name."

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