FOLLOWING a four-week investigation into the scam involving the payment of Old Age Pension vouchers, seven persons have been handed over to the Police by personnel of the Guyana Post Office Corporation (GPOC), officials reported yesterday.

GPOC officials said three persons wanted for questioning were missing.

The seven were held following collaborative probes into the Old Age Pension scam by personnel of the GPOC, the Police Force and the Auditor General's Office, they said.

At a news conference in Georgetown, GPOC Assistant Post Master General Mr Leon Dickson said the investigations resulted from reports received from the Ministry of Labour, Human Services and Social Security that a quantity of fake Old Age Pension vouchers were paid at various Post Offices across the country.

The investigations revealed that:

** Coupons were printed through an illegal source by persons unknown.

** Through an elaborate distribution system these coupons reached employees at 15 Post Offices.

** The coupons were exchanged for cash and included in the relevant days' transactions, and

**All coupons were eventually processed according to standard procedures and handed over to the ministry.

Assistant Post Master General Mr Noel Phillips said that while he was not in a position to give definite figures about the amount of money obtained through the scam, he estimated it was in the vicinity of $6M to $10M a month.

Chairman of the GPOC, Bishop Juan Edghill said that on August 26 last, more than 1,800 fake pension books and 31 genuine ones were discovered by the Police at a house in New Amsterdam.

He said the scam was the work of a partnership among operatives both within the relevant agencies and outside of them.

The operatives received protection from very senior persons within the system, Bishop Edghill said.

Asked if a specimen of the genuine voucher, which was reprinted with new security measures was not given to the GPOC, Bishop Edghill indicated in the negative.

However, he explained that the ministry did not want to give out the new security features on the vouchers.

"Information received during the investigation pointed to some collaboration with officers from the Ministry of Human Services. Consequently, three officers from that ministry were questioned and are assisting with the investigation.

"Following interrogations and examination of the evidence, seven employees were handed over to the Police, six are assisting with further investigations, three are missing and two are still to be interviewed," Dickson reported.

He added: "It was revealed that the mastermind of this scam would have the coupons signed, after compiling a list of addresses and phony identification numbers.

"These are sent to certain postal employees for encashment. The proceeds are then divided according to an agreement."

Initially, 23 employees from 15 Post Offices were interdicted from duty to facilitate the probe.

Subsequently, it was learnt that 10 of the employees interdicted were either on vacation or were functioning in other offices. These officers were exonerated and returned to duty, Dickson explained.

He felt that the scam had its genesis outside of the GPOC since the technical and safety details were not known to the GPOC employees.

Dickson, however, noted: "The Post Office cannot ignore the involvement of its officers in this illegal operation, but contends that it was their gullibility and convenience of position as paying officers that got them involved.

"These officers represent just three per cent of the corporation's staff."

The GPOC official pointed out that while the majority of postal workers are honest, the corporation wishes to state the employees are the product of society.

Dickson also reported that the GPOC is treating security and safety of workers with priority following the attacks on Post Offices at Bourda, Bagotville and Melanie Damishana.

He stated that the GPOC has promoted and sustained a range of enhanced services in addition to its primary business of communication through mail distribution.

"The organisation has over the years been painstaking in its efforts to provide our clients with a service worthy of praise.