Gillmore André Hoefdraad (born 17 December 1962) is a Surinamese economist and politician. He was Governor of the

Central Bank of Suriname The Central Bank of Suriname (CBvS) () is Suriname’s highest monetary authority and the country’s governing body in monetary and economic affairs. The Central Bank’s tasks were legislated in the Bank Act of 1956. Like other central banks, ...

from 2010 until 2015, and Ministry of Finance of Suriname from 2015 to 2020. In January 2020, it was reported that US$100 million was missing from the Central Bank. In July 2021, an

Interpol red notice An Interpol notice is an international alert circulated by Interpol to communicate information about crimes, criminals, and threats by police in a member state (or an authorised international entity) to their counterparts around the world. The in ...

was issued for Hoefdraad. Hoefdraad was sentenced ''

in absentia ''In Absentia'' is the seventh studio album by British progressive rock band Porcupine Tree, first released on 24 September 2002. The album marked several changes for the band, with it being the first with new drummer Gavin Harrison and the f ...

'' to 12 years imprisonment on 17 December 2021.

Biography

Hoefdraad was born on 17 December 1962 in

Paramaribo Paramaribo ( , , ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 241,000 people (2012 census), almost half of Suriname's p ...

. He is a chess player, and became national youth champion in 1978, 1979 and 1980. He studied economy at the

University of Santiago de Cuba The University of Oriente - Santiago de Cuba (, UO) is a university located in Santiago de Cuba, Cuba. It was founded in 1947 and is organized in 12 Faculties. Organization These are the 12 faculties in which the university is divided into: * F ...

. In 1988, Hoefdraad started working for the

, and was a part-time lecturer at the

Anton de Kom University Anton may refer to: People *Anton (given name), a list of people with the given name *Anton (surname), a list of people with the surname Places *Anton Municipality, Bulgaria **Anton, Sofia Province, a village *Antón District, Panama **Antón, ...

. In 1991, he became a full-time professor. In 1999, he started working for the

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution funded by 191 member countries, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It is regarded as the global lender of las ...

in Washington DC. In 2010, Hoefdraad was appointed Governor of the Central Bank. In 2015, he was appointed Ministry of Finance of Suriname in the cabinet of

Desi Bouterse Desi ( or or ; Hindustani: देसी , , ) also Deshi, is a loose term used to describe the peoples, cultures, and products of the Indian subcontinent and their diaspora, derived from Sanskrit (), meaning 'land' or 'country'. Desi trace ...

. During his tenure, he took out 92 loans increasing the debt from SRD 9.2 billion to SRD 20.7 billion. In 2019, the Progressive Reform Party reported Hoefdraad to the Prosecutor General for exceeding the debt ceiling. On 1 November 2019, the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

voted for a new law which no longer criminalised exceeding the debt ceiling. In January 2020, it was reported that US$100 million was missing from the cash reserves of the Central Bank. Vice President

Ashwin Adhin Michael Ashwin Satyandre Adhin (born 10 June 1980) is a Surinamese educator, politician, and was the Vice President of Suriname between 2015 and 2020. He is a member of the National Democratic Party. At the age of 35, he became the youngest vic ...

explained that the money was used to buy potatoes and onions. In April 2021, the Prosecutor General filed a request to prosecute Hoefdraad for dubious transactions between the Central Bank and the Belgian company Clairfield. On 11 July, an

was issued for

money laundering Money laundering is the process of illegally concealing the origin of money obtained from illicit activities (often known as dirty money) such as drug trafficking, sex work, terrorism, corruption, and embezzlement, and converting the funds i ...

embezzlement Embezzlement (from Anglo-Norman, from Old French ''besillier'' ("to torment, etc."), of unknown origin) is a type of financial crime, usually involving theft of money from a business or employer. It often involves a trusted individual taking ...

and corruption. On 23 July, an exit ban was issued. On 30 July, it was reported that he had been spotted in

Skeldon, Guyana Skeldon is a small town in eastern coastal Guyana, on the estuary of the Corentyne River, which forms Guyana's border with Suriname. As of 2012 it had a population of 2,275 . Skeldon and Springlands have been administratively merged into Corriver ...

. On 17 December 2021, Hoefdraad was sentenced ''in absentia'' to 12 years imprisonment and a fine of SRD 500,000. He was found guilty on violating the anti-corruption laws, misuse of state resources, participating in a criminal organisation, and embezzlement. On 24 December, an appeal was filed.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hoefdraad, Gillmore 1962 births 21st-century Surinamese politicians Living people Finance ministers of Suriname Politicians from Paramaribo Surinamese criminals Surinamese chess players Politicians convicted of embezzlement Academic staff of Anton de Kom University of Suriname International Monetary Fund people Governors of the Central Bank of Suriname Politicians convicted of fraud American chess players